FOEEST E ANGERS' CATECHISM 35 



some point to await the discovery and report of fires by the lookout 

 men. Guards must have a horse or an auto, and sometimes both. 



Dispatchers may be located either in the supervisor's headquarters 

 or at district ranger stations. They receive all fire reports from 

 lookout men and notify the proper ranger or guard of the location 

 and extent of the fire, dispatching additional men to the fire when 

 necessary. During the progress of large fires they keep in constant 

 touch with lookouts and fire camps, report progress of fires and con- 

 trol measures, and supervise the shipment of men, supplies, and fire 

 equipment. 



Telephone operators are employed during the fire season to handle 

 switchboards and fire calls in the supervisor's office or at centrally 

 located ranger stations. All lookouts and guard and ranger stations 

 on a national forest are connected by telephone with the supervisor's 

 headquarters. 



15. How many fire lookout stations are there in the national forests 

 of the California region? 



There are 125 primary lookout stations in the California region. 



16. Are women ever employed by the Forest Service as lookouts? 

 Xo. They were employed at one time, but this practice has been 



discontinued. 



17. How are airplanes used in fire fighting? 



Airplanes are no longer used on regular forest patrols because the 

 ground lookout system is being expanded to take care of the work of 

 fire discovery. After severe thunderstorms, and during periods of 

 heavy fog or smoke, when ground lookouts are unable to see for any 

 great distance, airplanes are used for scout duty. The greatest serv- 

 ice they render is in the reconnaissance of large going fires, where 

 they are used to determine the direction and rate of spread of the 

 flames, thus enabling the observer in the plane to direct effectively 

 the efforts of the tire fighters by advising them through messages 

 dropped with miniature parachutes, as to where best to attack the 

 fire. Airplanes are also used in emergencies to transport special 

 officers, provisions, and equipment to fires, landing being made at 

 the nearest available air field to the fire. 



Airplanes are used in fire-prevention work under a special ap- 

 propriation by Congress. The Forest Service hires all planes under 

 Government contract from commercial air-transport companies, 

 forest officers usually acting as observers. In California, the Forest 

 Service maintains contracts with commercial aviation companies 

 operating out of fields in the San Francisco Bay region and Los 

 Angeles. 



18. What is the purpose of a firebreak? 



A firebreak is a strip from 10 to 100 feet wide, cleared of all in- 

 flammable material, built usually along a ridge or along the base 

 of a hill. It is designed to provide a means of ingress to high fire- 

 hazard areas and serve as an artificial break in dense forest or brush 

 cover. It is valuable as a line from which to start back-firing during 

 large fires, and as a means of communication. Firebreaks are only 



