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REEDLEY, Calif. (KFSN) -- On Friday, Action News climbed aboard a chopper astatine the Garnet Fire Reedley Helibase.
"This craft tin alert for astir 2 hours," airbase manager Joe Romero with the U.S. Forest Service told us.
The Bell 205 we saw tin clasp 320 gallons of h2o with 2 crewmembers sitting successful the beforehand and six successful the back.
"This feline implicit present is usually the unit boss, and his occupation is to marque definite the cognition is going smoothly backmost here," Romero explained successful the compartment of the helicopter.
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As the manus crews dispatch connected the ground, the chopper takes backmost into the sky.
Dramatic caller videos provided by the U.S. Forest Service amusement the raging flames that chopper crews person encountered astatine Garnet.
"The aviator volition conscionable spell disconnected and alert to a dip site," Romero said. "He'll get water, he'll travel backmost and beryllium talking to idiosyncratic connected the ground, and spot wherever they request the water."
Out of the helicopter, we past went wrong the ARBO, which is fundamentally a mobile power tower.
Crew members determination perceive to six radios. They are ever waiting for the calls from the aerial attackers flying implicit the fire.
"It's our occupation to facilitate what they need," Romero said. "Whether it's an craft present oregon an craft astatine different base, the ARBO volition telephone retired to bid them up and get them to the fire."
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As we were there, the radar showed 4 helicopters adjacent Balch Camp, the country with captious PG&E infrastructure.
The operators constitute connected the windowpanes to support way of their helicopters...
"When it's precise engaged with radios going off, it tin get stressful," Romero said. "It's champion to person 2 to 3 radical successful here."
The base's six helicopters are portion of dozens of craft assigned to Garnet.
The region's tiny airports, similar Fresno's Chandler and Reedley Municipal, are present playing a cardinal relation arsenic chopper bases.
"When we motorboat an craft retired of here, it's a 10 to 20-minute flight, tops," Romero said. "Now, they tin spell up determination faster, get turned around, travel back, get fuel, and spell back."
Some of the pilots are trained to bash h2o drops astatine nighttime successful adjacent full darkness.
For quality updates, travel Gabe Ferris connected Facebook, X and Instagram.
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