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AFTER A FOREST FIRE IX WISCONSIN 



This forest of larch was destroyed by a ground fire burning in the deep vegetable mould. 

 The roots were killed and the trees uprooted by the wind 



forest became dry as tinder and there 

 were fires springing up here and there 

 throughout the forests. JNIany fires were 

 started as early as May and by the mid- 

 dle of June the situation became serious. 



The national forests in this section 

 are in many cases still without roads, 

 trails, and other means of communica- 

 tion, so that although the forests were 

 equipped with a force of patrolmen 

 many fires started at remote points 

 Vvdiich it was impossible to reach until 

 the fires had gained considerable pro- 

 portions and were very difficult to extin- 

 guish. 



On July 23 a severe electric storm, 

 practically without rain, passed over the 

 northern Rocky Mountains, setting a 

 large number of fires. The Coeur d'Alene 

 Mountains in particular suffered from 

 these fires. In three days the forest 

 rangers put out nine fires set by light- 

 ning in the Coeur d'Alene National 

 Forest. 



Five others from the same cause and 

 same storm started in remote and in- 

 accessible places which could not be 



reached until they assumed large pro- 

 portions. From one cause or another,, 

 many other fires were set. Heroic meas- 

 ures were taken to extinguish them. 



At one time 1,800 men, besides twa 

 companies of soldiers, were fighting fires- 

 in the Coeur d'Alene forest alone, and 

 large crews were fighting fires in other 

 parts of the northwestern forests. The 

 men fought stubbornly, working day and 

 night building trenches around the fires 

 and gradually confining them to a small 

 area. 



All fires seemed to be under control, 

 when on August 20 a terrific hurricane 

 sprung up, sweeping all the separate 

 fires together and making a gigantic wall 

 of flame many miles long. Many of the 

 fire fighters were directly in the path of 

 the fire. Seventy-nine fire fighters were 

 killed, and if it had not been for the skill 

 and the nerve of the forest rangers in 

 charge of the crews a very much larger 

 number would have perished. As it was, 

 about half of the number killed lost their 

 lives because of their failure to obey the 



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