Water Tenders assist firefight

Gridley duck lodge destroyed by fire

GRIDLEY — The main building at a family-owned ranch west of Gridley, used primarily for duck hunting, was destroyed by fire Wednesday.

Owner Louis Ratto said the building, a former duck hunting lodge built in the 1920s, was a two-story, wood-framed structure of about 5,500 square feet.

It was reportedly empty when a caretaker for the property called in the fire at 11:46 a.m.

Three engine companies from the Gridley Fire Department and Cal Fire-Butte County stations in Oroville battled the flames for more than an hour.

Battalion Chief Russ Fowler said it took about 15 minutes for the first engine company to reach the remote location, off West Liberty Road on the northern edge of the Gray Lodge State Wildlife Area.

Fowler said the building was engulfed when the first engine arrived. "The roof had already collapsed, and the walls caved in soon after that," he said.

Fowler said a northwest wind blowing at up to 15 mph helped fan flames, and blew around embers that threatened as many as 10 other smaller structures on the property.

Three outbuildings partially burned, but firefighters were able to keep damage to a minimum. One, just feet from the old lodge, caught fire from radiated heat. Fire in the two others was caused by flying embers, Fowler said.

Fire inspector Todd Price said Ratto was relieved that firefighters also saved a large barn containing several four-wheel-drive vehicles.

Wednesday afternoon, Price said he had placed the loss to the structures at $300,000. "The lodge was fully furnished, and contained a lot of mementos you really can't put a price on," he said.

The structure was a second home for the Rattos, who live most of the year in Sonoma County.

The cause of the blaze remained under investigation Wednesday night. Price said he had ruled out any intentional cause and was concentrating on wiring and heaters in the building.

Fowler said the building appeared to be supplied by natural gas, but several propane tanks were also found inside.

With no fire hydrants on the property, Fowler said crews were initially forced to pump water out of an irrigation canal to supply fire hoses. He said three water tenders, two of them from volunteer companies, later arrived.

Power lines that had fallen away from the building, and may have been energized, posed an extra challenge for fire crews, Fowler said.

No one was hurt, and a home occupied by a caretaker for the property was untouched.

A family staying overnight in a cabin on the property was driven out by heavy smoke. Black plumes of smoke could be seen from as far away as Chico and Yuba City.

Ratto said the property, which he and his father, Jim Ratto, bought about six years ago, is insured.

Source: Article

Fire that destroyed million dollar Lutz mansion caused by barbeque grill

Last Update: 12/11 1:23 pm
LUTZ -- A two-alarm fire destroyed a mansion in Lutz Monday night. The blaze began while the owner was cooking on a barbeque grill. He said he became distracted by a phone call and left the built-in grill unattended in a covered patio.

The 7,500 square foot home on Lake Charles Circle is a total loss.

Investigators say there were no hydrants near the house, so they were forced to use water tenders to fight the flames. By the time the tenders arrived, the house was fully engulfed.

Firefighters are let the flames burn out since there was nothing salvageable inside the home.

No one was hurt.

Wind-driven fire destroys house, ignites trees > General News > Stories > Evergreen > YourHub.com

Wind-driven fire destroys house, ignites trees

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Only a few minutes after ignition, the fire already had swept through the home in Alice.

Provided by: Brad Keller

Contributed by: Einar Jensen on 12/6/2007

High winds gusting at hurricane strength strafed the upper elevations of Clear Creek County, Colorado, all day December 3, 2007. One of those gusts is blamed for snapping a lodgepole pine and forcing it onto an electrical line that also snapped.

The sparking line fell onto a two-story wood frame home in the 8600 Block of Fall River Road in the community of Alice about 3:20 p.m. and quickly ignited the house. Nobody was home at the time, but a neighbor spotted the flames and called 911.

Clear Creek Fire Authority Station 7, which serves the high elevation neighborhoods of Alice and St. Mary's, went in service within minutes with a single volunteer firefighter. He drove the 1,800-gallon attack tender to the fire, less than a mile away, to find the house already fully engulfed. He established Alice Command, pulled an 1 ¾" attack line, donned his SCBA and approached only close enough to direct water onto the propane tank that already showed signs of scorching.

Additional CCFA volunteer firefighters from Station 2 in Idaho Springs (Ladder 2, Engine 2, Tanker 2 and Tanker 21) and Station 4 (Engine 4 and Engine 41) in Georgetown also responded, but their response time was much greater as they climbed the two-lane Fall River Road 3,000 vertical feet in nearly 9 miles from the Interstate 70 corridor.

Clear Creek EMS also responded with an ALS ambulance, as protocol requires, as did the Clear Creek Sheriff's Office Marmot Wildfire Crew because the wind threatened to push the blaze into the surrounding forest. CCSO deputies also controlled traffic in the area.

Central City Volunteer Fire Department responded with an engine and brush truck on a mutual aid request.

Driven by the high winds, the fire quickly engulfed the home and spread to nearby trees. Firefighters focused their efforts on the propane tank, a nearby home on the D-side of the house and a few torching lodgepoles on the B- and C-sides.

After only an hour, the chimney was the lone recognizable part of the house. Firefighters remained on scene to drown hot spots until 6 p.m. CCFA Station 7 personnel and Clear Creek deputies shared patrol duties overnight to verify the wind hadn't rekindled the fire and to check whether the chimney had collapsed.

Neither the emergency responders nor the homeowner (nor his dogs) was hurt in the fire.

CCFA Chief Kelly Babeon is confident the electrical line ignited the fire after ruling out other potential causes.

Patterson Fire Department — New 3,000-gallon water tender.

Patterson’s growing fire department got its most recent addition two weeks ago — a 3,000-gallon water tender.

Source - Written by: John Saiz / Patterson Irrigator / Wednesday, 07 November 2007

---

Elias Funez / Patterson Irrigator

The modified 2007 International will serve as a portable water source for firefighters who need to hose down flames that are not close to a water system. The $230,000 vehicle is getting the last of its equipment installed this week. After that, it will be ready to roll.

Though the new tender is easier to maneuver, the older tender beats it in water capacity.

“We’re losing about 1,200 gallons,” said Division Chief Jeff Gregory of the Patterson Fire Department. “But we’ll be able to get there a lot quicker.”

Water tenders typically carry large amounts of water to fires in rural areas, Gregory explained. Given the vast amount of agricultural land surrounding Patterson, the new tender is likely to see a lot of action.

Gregory estimates the older tender will still be sent out at least once a week, too.

The new vehicle is more versatile and easier to handle and requires less maintenance than the old one, Gregory said. It also can be driven by anyone with a special class-B driver’s license, which certifies firefighters to drive equipment such as fire trucks. The old truck required a class-A license.

“Some of the guys can drive the (older tender) like a little Volkswagen,” Gregory said. “Other guys aren’t that good.”

He remembered one incident when the old tender needed to be backed up about 300 yards. He decided to wait until the road was a little clearer, but a firefighter from Turlock volunteered to move it right away. He got behind the wheel and backed the truck up in a zigzag.

“‘Man, I should have waited,’” Gregory recalled the firefighter saying.

Maneuverability aside, many who used the old tender appreciate its large water capacity.

Gregory recalled other firefighters commenting that they were always happy to see the old yellow tender arrive on scene, because it meant there would be enough water.

With the Patterson station welcoming the new tender, the older one will move to the Diablo Grande Fire Station.

The West Stanislaus Fire Protection District got the old tender in the early ’70s, said Dick Gaiser, who’s been with the district since 1978. The trailer portion of it is a large aluminum container that at one time was used to haul vegetable oil.

Volunteers managed to raise the money to buy that vehicle.

Volunteers also helped raise money for the new tender — about $30,000 — with the district covering the remainder.

The tender is just the most recent addition to Patterson-area fire protection. The paid firefighters have seen their ranks swell the past two years, and much of the department will move once Station Two in west Patterson’s Keystone Pacific Business Park is finished in the next few weeks.

CA-RRU-Water Tender Accident - BLUE SHEET

CA-RRU-Water Tender Accident

BLUE SHEET
PRELIMINARY SUMMARY 24 HOUR REPORT

Vehicle Accident Riverside County Water Tender 39
07-CA-RRU-093086
October 24, 2007

This Preliminary Summary Report is intended as an aid in accident prevention, and to provide factual information from the first 24 hours of the accident review. To that end it is published and distributed within a short time frame. Information contained within may be subject to revision as further investigation is conducted, and other reports and documents are received.

Synopsis

The following information is a preliminary summary of a traffic accident in which two firefighters sustained minor injuries and a civilian received moderate injuries.

Narrative

On October 24, 2007, at approximately 1354 hours, Water Tender 39 was traveling westbound on Avenue 50 in the community of Coachella operated by a Fire Apparatus Engineer and with a Fire Captain as the passenger. A newer model full size Dodge pick up truck traveling eastbound on Avenue 50 drifted over the double yellow line and impacted head on with the Water Tender despite aggressive emergency evasive actions by the Water Tender operator. Immediately after the collision, both occupants of the Water Tender unbuckled their seatbelts and exited their vehicle to attend to the medical need of the pick up driver and initiate a response for a traffic collision through the Perris ECC. The driver of the pick up was transported by ground ambulance to a local Trauma Center for further medical treatment. Both of the Department employees were also transported by ground ambulance to a local hospital for evaluation, treated and released.

Recommendations for Immediate Corrective Actions

.. Always wear your seat belts per department policy
.. Maintain situational awareness at all times while driving
.. Be alert and prepared for the unexpected

--------------------------------------
messages with the blue sheet:

Please give the attached Blue Sheet referencing the Riverside County WT39
accident wide distribution for the purposes of discussion and Tailgate
Safety session.
----------------------------
See attached Blue Sheet.
Driving continues to be one of our most hazardous activities.
Please have your firefighters discuss this accident in 6 minutes for safety
and tailgate sessions.
----------------------------

Defensive driving pays off.

Low water complicates firefighting

Low water complicates firefighting

Virginia News

Low water complicates firefighting

By Sean Muserallo, NBC12 News

Declining water supplies are affecting how well some area firefighters are able to protect people’s homes. A dry, windy day like Friday can be the perfect combination for disaster.

If that happened Friday, Hanover fire officials aren’t so sure they would have enough water to put it out.

Some people in the area don’t rely on fire hydrants. They rely on ponds, streams and lakes, so when there is a fire, how quickly it’s put out depends on how fast firefighters can get water sources to the scene.

If there’s a fire in the rural part of Hanover, you’ll see a tanker that shuttles 3,000 gallons of water to the scene. It’s dumped into a holding tank and then pumped out of another truck to douse a blaze.

Once that truck is out of wet stuff, it has to refuel. One sad-looking stream used to be one of several water sources firefighters would tap into. That isn’t the case now.

Deputy Fire Marshal Willie Jones says that if water keeps evaporating, his crews will have to travel farther out to get enough water to knock out a decent-sized fire.

“We’ve done all we can do,” Jones said. “We can supply the water. We can extinguish fires, but we just ask for our citizens to be extra careful. If it became a large brushfire and the wind got it today, I don’t know how far it could go before we could suppress it.”

Daniel Dawkins & Leston Simpson show the value of waste

Daniel Dawkins & Leston Simpson show the value of waste - JAMAICAOBSERVER.COM

Daniel Dawkins & Leston Simpson show the value of waste

BY KERRY MCCATTY Sunday Observer staff reporter mccattyk@jamaicaobserver.com Sunday, October 14, 2007

It was murky and stinky, but they didn't care. All Daniel Dawkins and Leston Simpson knew was that water, in whatever dispensation, puts out fire. So, in March when they saw black smoke encircling the skies of Manor Park, St Andrew and people "running, crouching, waiting for the impending explosion", from a fire that had started in the Shell service station, there was only one thing to do - douse the fire. with liquid waste.

And for that quick thinking, which prevented what may have been a deadly explosion, the men will tomorrow be awarded with the Badge of Honour for Gallantry at the National Indoor Sports Centre.
Dawkins, who owns Allied Cesspool, and his employee, Simpson, were pulling effluent from a cesspool in the shopping mall next door to the gas station.

Daniel Dawkins (left) and Leston Simpson will receive the Badge of Honour for Gallantry tomorrow for using effluent from a cesspool truck to help put out a fire at a service station in St Andrew. (Photo: Karl McLarty)

"Whether the water is clean, dirty, smelly or effluent, get some water [on] it," Dawkins said, explaining his and Simpson's mindset leading to their act of bravery.
Simpson said he suggested to Dawkins that in the same way the truck could draw the waste, it could let it out. Dawkins immediately understood.

"An him say if mi brave enough and if we serious enough we can go over there and get it done," Simpson said.
Simpson was indeed serious, especially since this was not the first time he was using effluent to put out a fire.
He said while he worked at another cesspool company years ago, he witnessed a van engulfed in flames and "we just get a cesspool truck and deal wid it".

Both men said they were only thinking of the danger they were averting, nothing else.
"I'm an action-oriented person, so once I'm into it, you start giving commands, doing what needs to be done," Dawkins explained.
The fire broke out as a customer filled a container with gasolene. A Toyota Hilux pickup truck was partially damaged while a gas pump was destroyed by the blaze.

"I don't know what made me do it. But I thought that Manor Park would be in serious trouble if that gas station had blown up," Dawkins said. "We had to do something."
Dawkins eventually called back a water truck that had been working with them at the shopping mall to help contain the blaze as "it was really fighting us".

Dawkins and Simpson are among six people who will receive the Badge of Honour for Gallantry, the others being Lusson Bartley, for apprehending and bringing to justice two gunmen who robbed a store and, in another incident, reporting two gunmen to the police, which resulted in their capture and conviction; Joel Davidson, who prevented an 11-year-old girl from drowning, when he pulled her from a pool; Mark Wilson, who shot and killed three of four gunmen who were attempting to rob persons at an apartment complex; Annette Wong-Lee, for shooting one of two gunmen who entered her home; and eight-year-old Don Christopher Barnes, who saved a friend from drowning.

"I can't wait for that moment," Simpson said in anticipation of tomorrow's ceremony, where his family will accompany him. "Trust me, I never know it would be something so exciting."

Low water complicates firefighting

Low water complicates firefighting | NBC12 | Virginia News:

Virginia News

Low water complicates firefighting

By Sean Muserallo, NBC12 News

Declining water supplies are affecting how well some area firefighters are able to protect people’s homes. A dry, windy day like Friday can be the perfect combination for disaster.

If that happened Friday, Hanover fire officials aren’t so sure they would have enough water to put it out.

Some people in the area don’t rely on fire hydrants. They rely on ponds, streams and lakes, so when there is a fire, how quickly it’s put out depends on how fast firefighters can get water sources to the scene.

If there’s a fire in the rural part of Hanover, you’ll see a tanker that shuttles 3,000 gallons of water to the scene. It’s dumped into a holding tank and then pumped out of another truck to douse a blaze.

Once that truck is out of wet stuff, it has to refuel. One sad-looking stream used to be one of several water sources firefighters would tap into. That isn’t the case now.

Deputy Fire Marshal Willie Jones says that if water keeps evaporating, his crews will have to travel farther out to get enough water to knock out a decent-sized fire.

“We’ve done all we can do,” Jones said. “We can supply the water. We can extinguish fires, but we just ask for our citizens to be extra careful. If it became a large brushfire and the wind got it today, I don’t know how far it could go before we could suppress it.”

evelyn in india: water truck driver ran down an old man

evelyn in india: Notes from the Newspaper:

Notes from the Newspaper - At a Nepalese airport flights were delayed for 2 hours due to technical difficulties. Two goats were on the runway. A water truck driver ran down an old man in a market yesterday. A mob quickly surrounded the driver and started kicking and punching him- the cops had to pull him out. There was a picture in the paper. This mob stuff happens here every now and then. As I was driving home after dark the other day I saw a guy tied to a pole getting hit by some men in a crowd"

Woman struck truck on South Grade Road

By J. Harry Jones
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
Source: UNION-TRIBUNE

PALOMAR MOUNTAIN – Although the investigation has not been finalized, a California Highway Patrol spokesman said the death of a 60-year-old Escondido woman whose motorcycle crashed into a water truck on Palomar Mountain last week was primarily her fault.

Sally Mata and other motorcyclists were heading down South Grade Road on Sept. 30 when a water truck turned left into her lane while heading toward a turn-out area. Mata's Honda crashed into the truck and she died a short time later.

Lt. Paul Golonski of the CHP said it appears Mata failed to do anything to avoid the collision.

“We're in a quandary as to why she didn't apply the brakes or take evasive action,” Golonski said.

Although the truck was in Mata's lane, the CHP will likely not recommend that charges be brought against its driver, Golonski said.

“You can't just run into someone even if they're in the way,” Golonski said.

Other motorcyclists told investigators that Mata and the group of motorcyclists she was riding with had sped past them further up the mountain and speed possibly played a role in the crash, Golonski said.

An initial report that a possible cause of the accident was that Mata had crossed the double-yellow center line into the path of the truck was incorrect, Golonski said.

That initial description upset many in the motorcycling community. It is unlikely the CHP's latest findings will quell that anger.

Mata was involved in a fatal motorcycle accident on the same road almost exactly one year before her death. In that case, a 30-year-old Marine on a sports bike lost control while rounding a curve and slid into Mata's path. The Marine was killed; Mata was injured.

Reckless driving by motorcyclists and drivers of sports cars has been a problem on the mountain for many years.

Palomar Mountain Volunteer Fire Department Chief George Lucia said his department responds to an average of three serious accidents each weekend. He estimates that the actual number of accidents along South Grade and East Grade roads is closer to a dozen most weekends.

Some motorcyclists who have been traveling the roads of Palomar Mountain for years are upset with the often young and inexperienced riders who don't respect the twisting, dangerous curves of the roads, thereby making it risky for everyone.

Lucia said there was only one serious accident this past weekend, resulting in a broken shoulder for a motorcyclist.

Lucia recently asked the county to use grant money to install “rumble strip-style passive traffic and speed control” measures on the mountain's roads. He's asking that grooves be cut into the pavement in the middle of the roads so that a driver nearing the center line would feel a significant vibration. He also wants grooves cut across lanes before each sharp turn, thereby giving drivers a warning to reduce speed.

Lucia said yesterday the county has not yet responded to his request. He said phone calls and e-mails from motorcyclists have been surprisingly supportive of the ideas.

Checkout this Mad Max East Coast Water Tanker

Mad Max East Coast Water Tender well they call em' Tankers on the right coast.
Called a "Breaker" it is a 6X6 water Tanker / Tender used to plow through brush. This one is up in the Cape Cod area at the Cape Cod Fire Department - West Barnstable Headquarters Fire Station 1 - West Barnstable

(WB-1)

Cape Cod Brush Breaker

1967 International Military 6x6 / 1982 T Young Brush Breaker
300 gpm - 1000 gals
(diesel / standard)
Foam Eductor
Pump & roll - Winch

[MF-xxxx] Placed in service 1982
The last "County" built brush breaker

Terrifying blaze engulfs trailer

| thedaily.com.au:

Terrifying blaze engulfs trailer

12:00p.m. 3 October 2007

A holidaying Caloundra family is devastated after losing about $20,000 worth of motocross gear when the trailer they were towing caught fire south-west of Brisbane.

Ken Jackson was travelling with his wife and two children on the Warrego Highway on Monday when he noticed "a flash of orange" through the luggage, blankets and pillows piled in the back of the vehicle.

"As I saw the glimpse of fire through the back window, my wife saw it in the side mirror," Mr Jackson said.

"It was terrifying."

The family pulled off the highway at Tivoli, near Ipswich.

A quick-thinking Ipswich Water truck driver emptied his truck's load over the blazing trailer as Mr Jackson called Triple 0.

Karana Downs acting fire station officer Des Sardie said the Jacksons were "very lucky" the water truck was on site.

"If the truck hadn't been there, the whole car would have gone up in flames, the blaze was so severe," Mr Sardie said.

The family was carrying four motocross bikes on the trailer, all of which were destroyed in what Mr Jackson described as a "heartbreaking" loss. The gear was not insured.

"We are devastated to have lost the bike gear, but it just could have been so much worse," Mr Jackson said.

His 10-year-old son Luke said he was devastated to lose his competition bike, having just been awarded third place in a south-east Queensland motocross event. He will now struggle to compete in the A-Grade Championships in two weeks.

"That one is the big deal," Mr Jackson said.

"We will have to pull out all stops to find something for him to ride, but it will be tough."

The trailer fire caused a 1km burn along the Brisbane-bound side of the highway near Tivoli, and even after firefighters extinguished the blaze, it reignited twice in the afternoon.

Top of the world at Henry Coe State Park - Lick Fire

Cal Hydro Water Tender - Lick Fire Santa Clara County - Henry Coe State Park Filling a pumpkin at top of ridge B/C div break

SUV- Water truck crash sends 6 to Mercy

October 1, 2007

By Katie Burford | Herald Staff Writer

Six people were taken to the hospital by ambulance Sunday after the sports utility vehicle they were in crashed with a water-hauling truck west of Ignacio on County Road 318.

JACK PINCUS/Herald

Drivers in a water tanker and a black Suburban towing a U-Haul trailer collided west of Ignacio in the 2000 block of County Road 318 on Sunday. Six members of the family riding in the Suburban were sent to Mercy Regional Medical Center, where they were treated and released.

The accident happened at about 10 a.m. Sunday just west of County Road 309, said Tom Aurnhammer, deputy fire chief for Los Pinos Fire Protection District.

Family members were taken to Mercy Regional Medical Center were they were treated and later released, hospital spokesman David Bruzzese said.

Mike Shorty, the driver of the water truck, said he was heading west on 318 when he came over a hill and saw the SUV, pulling a U-Haul trailer, stopped in the road to make a left-hand turn.

Shorty said he swerved left to miss the SUV, a Chevrolet Suburban, just as it started to turn. Both vehicles went off the road and ran into a thicket of trees.

Shorty said another water truck was behind him, and he swerved to avoid a piled-up.

Chris Howlett, a relative of the family's, said he came out to the scene as soon as he heard about it. He said his grandmother, along with his cousin, her three daughters and her boyfriend were in the SUV and had been turning into his aunt and uncle's driveway when the crash happened.

He said his cousin's 11-year-old daughter had been thrown out the back window, which was shattered.

Howlett said his cousin's family had just moved to the area from Arizona.

The accident investigation was being handled by the Southern Ute Tribal Police; an official on scene declined to provide details.

Shorty said he was going about 45 mph when he came over the hill and saw the stopped U-Haul.

Traffic on 318 was closed for about 10 minutes and was down to one lane for a couple hours after the accident.

Idiot mayor, Roy McClung his car is a danger to the bridge!

City cut in half concerns mayor and the sky is falling...

Monday, September 24, 2007

The thought of a truck slamming into the overpass at the Parachute interchange of Interstate 70 chills the city’s mayor, Roy McClung.

“If we were to have something happen to that bridge … the whole north side of this valley is cut off from emergency service,” McClung said. “The best bet we would have is Flight For Life out of Grand Junction.”

McClung said the truck crash into a span over I-70 at 26 1/2 Road in Grand Junction this summer only renewed his concerns.

Grand Valley Fire Protection District Chief David Blair said if the Parachute overpass were damaged, his staff would encounter significant delays responding north of the city.

Because emergency services are based south of the overpass, crews would have to drive along frontage roads east to Rifle or west to Garfield County Road 300 to cross I-70.

“That bridge really is the only way from north Parachute to south Parachute,” Blair said.

McClung said the city is working with the Colorado Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration to turn a bridge roughly 1 1/2 miles west of Parachute into a working overpass.

That bridge is an old railroad overpass which was earmarked as a second Parachute interchange during the oil shale boom of the early 1980s, McClung said.

“Most of the infrastructure is there, but we have to go through CDOT and the Federal Highway Administration, and that is a long, slow process at best,” he said.

It could take three to five years to begin construction, he said.

Doug Aden, who heads Colorado’s Transportation Commission, said Parachute’s concerns are another example of needs outpacing the state’s transportation budget.

“These are real-life examples of things that just aren’t going to get done, at least with state funds, given the current revenues available to CDOT,” Aden said.

Creating a new interchange or expanding the existing interchange to deal with increased energy-industry traffic would be “very expensive” prospects.

Aden said unless the federal government or local entities pay for highway projects, Parachute might have to wait.

While overpass expansions sit on the back burner, McClung said city officials nervously hope the bridge at its inerchange remains intact.

“With the number of oil field trucks we have coming through here, it’s just a matter of time before something happens,” McClung said.

He said it’s just a matter of time before a water truck crashes into the bridge, igniting the diesel fuel in its tank.

“If the wrong thing happens and one of these suckers blows up, it’s going to be bad news,” McClung said.

•

Water tender flips, driver hospitalized

CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS:
By Record Searchlight staff Tuesday, September 18, 2007

A Colusa man was in serious condition Monday evening after the water tender he was driving for a Bieber logging company rolled over on a forest road Monday morning north of Lake Britton. Wallace Allee, 69, was airlifted to Mercy Medical Center in Redding about an hour after the 1980 Kenworth he was driving for Dell Logging hit a small tree and flipped, according a report by the California Highway Patrol. It appeared that the truck brakes had failed as Allee was driving downhill, a CUHP spokesman said. The truck lost its water tank and ended up on its wheels again, the CHP report said.

News: A fair contest: Strong man opens with two world record breakers

News(1): A fair contest: Strong man opens with two world record breakers involving Water Truck
"Strong man opens with two world's record breakers Related Videos Strong man takes aim at record Strong man John Wooten attempts to break a world record by pulling a truck at the Oklahoma State Fair. What could possibly be a better way to kick off Oklahoma's centennial year state fair than by breaking a world record?

Promoter Jim Morris would answer that with a quick reply — "breaking two world records.”

Strong man John Wooten, 59, of Boston pulls a water truck weighing more than 50,000 pounds during a kickoff event for the Oklahoma State Fair Centennial Expo on Wednesday.

And that's what happened Wednesday. Unfortunately, not many people saw it because the fair was not yet open.

The fair begins today with opening ceremonies at 10 a.m. And in recognition of the state's 100th birthday, for one day and one day only, admission will be $1, as in 100 pennies.

After today, gate admission goes back to $8 for adults and $5 for children six through 11, but fair officials and promoters such as Morris have worked hard to make sure the entertainment and attractions are worth the admission price.

For years, Morris has been the promoter in charge of the ever-popular monster truck show. But a centennial celebration only comes along once in a lifetime, and Morris said he wanted to do something a little different this year.

What he came up with is more of the kind of blue-collar, crowd-pleasing entertainment you'd expect to mesh well with the monster-truck crowd.

"I'm doing the supercross, but then I said, ‘Hey, why don't we do something like that strongman stuff you see on TV?'” he said.

Thus was born Oklahoma's Strongest Man competition,

To promote the strong-man competition, Morris brought in John Wooten, a 59-year-old Boston resident who holds 139 world records in feats of strength.

It took three tries

Wednesday afternoon, Wooten strapped a harness on to his 6-foot-1-inch, 290-pound frame, chained himself to a 50,000-pound water truck, leaned back and began to pull, inching steps backward. His face turned fire-engine red as he yelled out single-syllable kung-fu sounds and began to exhale loudly.

He was going for time and distance.

It took him three tries, but on the last one, he managed to clear what he said were two world records.

The previous records for moving a 50,000-pound truck were 10 feet in 10.5 seconds, and 30 feet in 29.65 seconds.

Wooten made the 10 feet in 10.27 seconds and the 30 feet in 23.65 seconds.

"And that was uphill,” he boasted as he gasped for breath.

Over the years, Wooten said, he's done some crazy strength tests, including on separate occasions, pulling a 757 jet, pulling a cruise ship and back lifting a 7,000-pound elephant.

But during Friday night's strongest man competition at the fair, he's got a show, he said, that's "really crazy — it's gonna be really off the wall. But you have to come out Friday and see it. I'm not talking.”

Man Carjacks City Worker, Steals Truck

Man Carjacks City Worker, Steals Truck - News Story -
KCTV Kansas City: KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Police said a man stole a city water truck worth $200,000 in a carjacking Monday then he slammed it into a tree as police chased him.The carjacking happened Monday afternoon near East 39th and Main streets.
Police pursued the truck to East 43rd Street and Cleveland Avenue, where they said the man wrecked the truck.
He suffered minor injuries, and emergency workers took him away from the scene in an ambulance. Investigators found a large kitchen knife in the van, they said.The city driver was not hurt.The van was equipped with cameras to check underground sewer lines.

FIIIIIIIRE!!!

blog.myspace.com/dirtyairbornsilverado:

FIIIIIIIRE!!!

So i was at work today. i was operating a 4000 gallon water truck. it sprays water onto the ground to control dust. it also has a side jet that can shoot about 70 yards with the wind. so right after lunch today the was a fire on freeway 5 at H street in Chula Vista. so i drove to the edge of the job site to see how close it was. it was right on the other side of the freeway. so i drove over the bridge just as the 1st firetruck got there. i asked the fire chief if he could use my water and he said "we can definatley use you". so the 1st water truck ran out of water. their next dilema was the trolley tracks. the nearest fire hydrant was on the other side of the tracks. they would have to shut down the power to the tracks to run the fire hose across the tracks. they had a CHP stop ALL the traffic going north on freeway 5 so i can turn my water truck around to put out the rest of the fire with my side jet. it was so fuckin cool. i wanna be a fireman!

Truck driver killed in north Qld smash

Truck driver killed in north Qld smash - Breaking News - National - Breaking News: "In another northside accident, a 66-year-old woman is being treated for head and neck injuries after a car and a water truck collided at Aspley. The truck is believed to have struck the driver's side door of the woman's vehicle at the intersection of Zillmere Road and Gympie Road about 6.05am (AEST). The woman was trapped inside her vehicle and needed to be removed by Queensland Fire and Rescue officers. She was transported to the Royal Brisbane Hospital with head and neck injuries. The 63-year-old man driving the truck was treated for shock."

Cocoa and Caffeine Hollywood Travels

Cocoa and Caffeine Hollywood Travels:

An Explosive Weekend ( and a need for protective eyewear)

It’s not every day that you exit the freeway to see a sign flashing:

CAUTION: GUNFIRE AND EXPLOSIONS…

But this is L.A. and the “gunfire and explosions” on an otherwise benign Saturday could be attributed solely to Hancock, a new feature film helmed by Peter Berg and starring Will Smith and Charlize Theron.

Saturday, I worked downtown on another shoot and afterward came by Hancock’s set to witness the huge street stunt they had planned. Amid the high-rises of downtown, Hancock had taken over several streets—a flutter of activity at nearly 1 a.m.

An amazingly, huge crater “iced” with overturned cars had been created in the middle of the street. A water truck continually passed through wetting down the streets as cast, crew, and “looky-loos” waited on the rooftops of adjoining buildings.

With stunts like this, you really only get one shot—so they rehearsed over and over again until BAM! a huge explosion belched cars up into the air and down again as they slammed into each other and skidded every which way. The ensuing black smoke forced me to look away. (Glad I put those sunglasses on as protective eyewear!) When I looked back, a moment later, the street was a mess of debris and thrashed cars. Even to cast and crew and others alike, it was impressive.

San Bernardino County Water woes abating

San Bernardino County:

Water woes abating

Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 08/12/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT

LUCERNE VALLEY - The water shortage that followed state authorities' recent move to shut down unlicensed water haulers appears to be getting close to ending, officials said.

"It's stabilizing quite well," Doug Lannon, a battalion chief for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said Friday.

Lannon said he arrived in Lucerne Valley on Wednesday evening. At the time, 16 households had run out of water and an additional 45 households had less than a day's worth of water in storage tanks.

"Obviously, it was a pretty emotional issue for a lot of people up here," he said. "It was a pretty significant incident for the people who didn't have water."

Officials called in two contractors who supplied seven water tenders and a water trailer to haul water around the desert, Lannon said.

He said truckers who could not carry water in their own tankers after the enforcement operation rode along with drivers and helped navigate water supplies to thirsty households.

Lucerne Valley High School football players helped fill tankers with well water, and several other community volunteers helped out during the water shortage.

The shortage occurred while temperatures

The water problem began when the state Department of Public Health teamed up with the California Highway Patrol to search for unlicensed water haulers in response to complaints that truckers were providing water without permits.

Many people in Lucerne Valley store water in tanks and rely on truckers to stay supplied with the precious resource.

Public health official Janet Huston acknowledged early last week that authorities did not anticipate the enforcement operation would prevent many desert dwellers from replenishing their water supplies.

In an effort to relieve the water crisis, public health officials elected to allow unlicensed water carriers whose equipment and water supplies did not pose a health hazard to resume deliveries after they applied for licenses.

"There are a lot more haulers here than certified haulers. The mistake the state made was not to give them a warning," said Chuck Bell, a board member of the Lucerne Valley Economic Development Association.

First District Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt's Web site features listings of carriers who are allowed to deliver water and wells where drinking water can be obtained. The supervisor's Web site is www.sbcounty.gov/bosd1.

As of Friday, the supervisor's office listed nine water haulers who have applied for licenses and a quintet of carriers who already possess licenses.

David Zook, the supervisor's spokesman, said people without computers will be able to access and print out online information at the Lucerne Valley Branch Library, 33103 Highway 247.

Lannon said water was delivered to 46 residences Thursday and an additional 67 households received water the following day.

72-hr briefing of FR 420 - Water Tender Accident

United States Department of Agriculture / Forest Service Peaks Ranger District

5075 N. Highway 89

Flagstaff, AZ 86004-2852

Phone: (928) 526-0866

Fax: (928) 527-8288

Date: July 13, 2007


72-hr briefing of FR 420 - Water Tender Accident
THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS PRELIMINARY AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE


Preliminary factual findings: At approximately 1615 hours on July 09, 2007, the operator of water tender 5 (WCF Unit 7501) was returning to the Schultz fire after filling with 3000 gallons of water in Cheshire. At approximately 1630, while traveling north on FR 420, the water tender operator moved the water tender to the right side of the road to allow several vehicles to pass. After the vehicles passed, the water tender approached a curve in the road and remained on the right side of the road. As the right wheels traveled on the shoulder of the road, the shoulder gave way. As the right front tire began to slide down a ten foot embankment, the operator was able to get the tire back on the road. The rear tires, which support the load, caused the shoulder to give way even more. The momentum of the water in the tank shifting caused the water tender to slide down the embankment and roll to the right. The water tender came to rest on its cab. The operator and passenger were wearing seatbelts. They were also wearing hardhats and were not injured.


Narrative: Water Tender (WT) 5 WCF 7501, 1992 Ford L9000, license number A258642, with 3000 gallon.


WT-5 was assigned to the Schultz Fire. The operator was returning to the fire for the second time after filling with water from a city hydrant in the Cheshire sub-division and was traveling on FR 420.


FR 420 is a level 3 dirt road which is maintained and had been bladed 3 weeks prior to the accident. At the location of the accident, FR 420 is 15 feet wide of hard surface with a 4 % out slope. As you are facing the direction of travel, there is a cut-bank on the left side of the road and an embankment dropping approximately ten feet on the right.


WT-5 traveled for 51 feet on the shoulder of the far right side of the road before the shoulder gave way. The right front tire began to slide down an embankment but the operator was able to get the tire back on the road. The rear tires, which support the weight of the load, caused the shoulder to give way even more.



The combination of the shoulder giving way and the momentum of the water shifting in the tank caused WT-5 to start sliding down the embankment and roll to the right. WT-5 rolled over and came to rest on its cab at the bottom of a ten-foot embankment in Schultz Creek.


Records indicated appropriate vehicle inspections had occurred prior to the incident.









/s/ Alvin Brown acting for


GENE WALDRIP


District Ranger




cc: Bequi Livingston

Alex Perez

Linda M Murphy

John Booth

Alvin R Brown

Caring for the Land and Serving People Printed on Recycled Paper

Natural Gas Well Water Trucks Can Explode

cbs4denver.com - Natural Gas Well Water Trucks Can Explode:

(CBS4) DENVER They're called "water trucks" and are an important part of Colorado's booming natural gas industry. But the trucks aren't carrying regular water. Instead, the "produced water" can be dangerous and occasionally explode under certain circumstances, according to firefighters.

The trucks carrying the water are everywhere in Garfield, Mesa and Weld Counties. There is no state or federally mandated training for drivers who handle the "produced water." No special gear is required and the water is not regulated as a hazardous material.

The "produced water" contains hydrocarbons like benzene, toluene, and xylene. They're all chemical compounds that come from natural gas wells.

Last February, Dave and Evelyn Connors nearly lost their lives when Dave, a professional driver, used a blow torch to thaw the valve of a company water truck.

"The next thing I remember, I'm laying on the ground, and wondering where all the blood is coming from," said Evelyn Connors.

Drivers said it is a common practice in the industry, but the explosive gases came out of the "produced water" that had been sitting in the partially empty tanker overnight. A spark from the blow torch hit the gases, igniting the explosion.

"We was fragged from the explosion with metal and sand and ice out of the truck, first, second, third degree burns," said Dave Connors.

Fragments of the truck flew about a quarter-mile in the heavily residential neighborhood.

Mike Morgan, the fire chief in Rifle, is aware of "produced water's" potential and thinks there should be more education.

"If we convince ourselves that it's water, or that this stuff won't hurt you, that's when someone's going to get hurt or killed," Morgan said.

Morgan adds that water truck explosions are rare and "produced water" almost never poses a hazard driving down the highway when trucks have a full load. The risk starts to rise when the tanker is partially empty and hydrocarbons come out of the water and turn into combustible gas, he said. It would still take an ignition source like an open flame, spark or static electricity to make it dangerous.

"There's really very minimal risk," said Doug Hock, a spokesman for EnCana, an energy company. "Produced water has dissolved hydrocarbons in it and like any substance of this nature; you have to follow safe practices. If you follow safe practices, accidents can be prevented."

Hock said drivers who transport "produced water" aren't allowed to have open flames on a gas well site.

Firefighters said accidents do happen because of the growth in natural gas development and the surge of inexperienced drivers to meet that demand.

Many water truck explosions happen during the winter when drivers use a blow torch. Some trucking companies are starting to spend the money to add electric valve heaters so blow torches aren't necessary. But there are not federal or state rules that prohibit the use of a blow torch.

Wildfire scorches 5,000 acres near Finley

Mid Columbia News:

Wildfire scorches 5,000 acres near Finley
Flames coursed through about 5,000 acres of dry, yellow cheatgrass and sagebrush south of Finley on Sunday

Published Monday, July 30th, 2007
By Andrew Sirocchi, Herald staff writer

Flames coursed through about 5,000 acres of dry, yellow cheatgrass and sagebrush south of Finley on Sunday, sending columns of dirty gray and black smoke billowing into blue skies.

By early evening with the fire about 30 percent to 40 percent contained, 75 regional firefighters were making a concerted push to hold the blaze south of a command center set up off an unimproved road next to Highway 397.

The blaze, which had burned since about 9 a.m., had not threatened any structures or caused any injuries.

But as the flames moved north, officials worried the blaze was making its way closer to a row of orchards and homes.

"Our objective now is trying to hold it to Ayers Road," said Kennewick Fire Marshal Mark Yaden. "But that's a challenge right now."

Nearly every agency in Benton, Franklin and Walla Walla counties, as well as Hanford, sent firefighters to join the attack in the desert south of the Tri-Cities.

By early evening, with flames only a few hundred yards from the command center and firefighters tiring from a daylong fight, officials said they had made a request to authorize state mobilization and allow crews from agencies outside the region to respond. But it was unclear when a decision would be reached and local firefighters continued to attack the blaze with all the regional resources they could muster.

Two planes - one from Pendleton and a second from Richland, were dispatched to drop fire retardant chemicals over the blaze.

Water, though, was scarce and being used conservatively.

Benton Fire District 1 officials set up a 3,000-gallon mobile water tank and allowed any agency to pick up loads from the command center. A water tender made repeated trips into Finley to keep the mobile tank stocked.

Ultimately, it was the challenges posed by the terrain - and the difficulties of safely reaching the areas that were burning - that ensured firefighters would have to attack the blaze with fire instead of water.

"The conditions, the wind, the terrain, the access - it's all wrapped into one," said Benton County Fire District 1 Capt. Devin Helland of the difficulties that firefighters were facing. "We're trying to flank it and pinch it off."

Officials believe the fire began in the Wallula Gap near the Columbia River. With the blaze spreading, a cause was not immediately being determined but Yaden said firefighters will investigate whether sparks from a passing train ignited the blaze.

"Early on, there was some mention of a train but that's just speculation now," Yaden said.

While the flames spread steadily throughout the day, it was the intensity of the heat as much as the speed of the fire that was creating problems and making the job more difficult than it otherwise would be.

By mid-afternoon, two bulldozers used to clear brush and fuel from the path of the fire were temporarily put out of commission.

Meanwhile, Yaden said firefighters were tiring and the flames already had jumped several roads where officials had hoped they would be able to hold the lines.

Firefighters Matt Demiter and Jill Berry, of Benton County Fire District 4, returned to the command center covered in soot and sweat with a melted side mirror, boiled paint and a damaged plastic fender on their truck.

The two firefighters initially were deployed off Finley Road to attack the blaze by back burning brush and grass. The terrain, though, created too many hazards and made reaching the flames too difficult to trap the blaze in its earliest stages.

"It was too hard to fight," Demiter said. "With the canyons being so steep, it wasn't safe being in there." Both firefighters were dispatched to the desert blaze directly from Kennewick, where they had helped put out a brush fire near 53rd Avenue. It was a small fire, particularly compared to the desert blaze they would see for the rest of the day south of Finley.

But for many firefighters, it was one more job that made attacking the desert fire even more tiring and difficult with little end in sight.

"It's been a pretty calm fire but there's a lot of work left to be done," Yaden said. "There's a lot of fuel left in the stubble.

Local News - TCU - Early Morning Vegetation Fires

MyMotherLode.com:
CAL FIRE NEWS

Tuolumne And Calaveras Early Morning Vegetation Fires

Friday, July 27, 2007 - 06:45 AM

Bill Johnson

MML News Director

San Andreas, CA -- The CAL FIRE Emergency Command Center in San Andreas is reporting two vegetation fires this morning.

The first is under the power lines at Bonds Flat Rd. and J-59. Six engines, a water tender and a dozer have been dispatched. No other details are available at this time.

The second fire is being reported in the area of Hwy 26 and Ponderosa Way and Whiskey Slide Rd. Fire crews are reporting the fire is approximately two-and-a-half acres in size with a slow spread. The fire is reportedly located on a noll.

Written by bill.johnson@mlode.com

Runaway Water Truck Crashes Into Homes - COLORADO

myfox:

Runaway Truck Crashes Into Homes

The accident scene in Thornton. July 26, 2007. BREAKING WATER TRUCK NEWS Related Items: A truck plows into a fence missing a boy playing in the yard but destroying a fence. July 26, 2007. Videos by JOHN ROMERO THORNTON -- A water truck apparently rolled down a hill from a Thornton construction site Thursday, crashing into two homes and narrowly missing an 11-year-old boy. Authorities say the vehicle went across a residential road, and took out a fence before crashing into the homes. The eleven-year-old was standing at the location just moments before the crash. .

CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - Interesting Water Tender Picture

CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS: Inciweb picture : Interesting Water Tender Picture

Interesting Water Tender Picture from Inciweb...Division G Water Tender - Monument Complex
Oregon, Umatilla National Forest
Credit: Robert "Robo" Robustelli photo

Posted by Bob Blogger at 7/25/2007 02:08:00 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Labels: Monument Complex, Oregon, water tender"

Truck Rolls Off Los Gatos Hillside, Killing Driver
Overturned water truck creates river of mud

Los Gatos Observer
By Alastair Dallas 07/22/07 7:49 am
Click here to respondPrint-friendly version

A water truck rolled off a mountain road Saturday morning, killing the driver. Both Los Gatos/Monte Sereno Police and California Highway Patrol responded to the first call, received at 10:42 a.m. The site of the accident, 17541 Santa Cruz Hwy, was on a private road hundreds of feet above Hwy. 17, just south of The Cats restaurant.

The driver was unofficially identified as Ivan Ramirez, aged 26. He was prounced dead by AMR paramedics at 11:06 a.m.
The heavy water truck rolled off the steep dirt road to the right

The truck, a Hertz rental Ford F-750, held 2,000 gallons of non-potable water weighing 16,680 pounds. The truck wsa probably rented from Valew, a construction equipment company in Adelanto, near Palmdale, CA. Apparently, the water shifted on the last turn, rolling the truck off the dirt road onto a freshly-graded ledge some 10 feet below. The truck landed on its roof, sending its water down the hill as a river of mud that hindered access to the site. It is also possible that the driver was attempting to turn around on the dead-end road.

The CHP has jurisdiction over the accident, and used the parking lot at The Cats as a staging area for the medical examiner. Officers and a woman from the coroner's office interviewed five men in jeans and baseball caps as people, likely stunned relatives and friends, continued to arrive. One man clutched a county brochure titled, "What To Do Now."
Contrary to media reports, traffic on Hwy. 17 was not affected by the accident
An unidentified woman from the Coroner's office interviews men outside The Cats restaurant
The truck is a Ford F-750 with a 2,000-gallon tank

water trucks tending street trees

Baltimore Messenger: "Hudson's Corner

Hudson's Corner

07/18/07 Kathy Hudson e-mail hudmud@aol.com Email this story to a friend If the city tends to itself the way it does its trees, we're in trouble Some say the way we care for our houseplants reflects the way we take care of ourselves. Taking that analogy further, I wonder if the way a city takes care of its trees reflects the way a city takes care of itself. If it is, we are not doing a very good job. And when I say "we," I am pointing not only at city government but also at us residential and corporate citizens. Recently, I have lamented the dead saplings on Falls Road by the Poly-Western playing fields. This spring, these evenly spaced, well-staked new plantings seemed emblematic of a renewal of city shade trees and the beautification of two venerable high schools. As I wondered if the city had planted them, or if an enterprising group of environmentally aware students had, those saplings gave me hope. I never discovered the answer, and now many dead saplings seem emblematic of how we do not always care for what is ours. Why would anyone plant a tree and not plan to water it during a dry season? And a dry season is what we have had this year. Dead trees dot the city. When I think of other cities, I have water envy. I envy what I saw in Chicago: water trucks tending street trees and many containers of exquisite ornamental plantings. Then again, Chicago so values its natural resources that it prohibits building right next to the lakefront. You won't find kiosks littering Millennium Park or condos obliterating the view of Lake Michigan. I also envy the water truck my Beechdale Road neighbor reported watering the Boise, Idaho, street plantings early one morning. If Chicago and Boise can do it, why can't we? Granted, we have a huge city and miles of public greenspace. I understand public safety and education might take priority over trees, but after the real estate boom and with high property taxes, why we can't have a few more water trucks and a few more people tending trees and city plantings? Watering these trees could eliminate the waste of time that occurs when saplings throughout the city die each summer. Or could it be that our city is heading in a less "green" direction? The reported comments of city planners at a hearing for the Marianist property on Roland Avenue make me wonder. According to a June 14 Messenger article, city planners "were opposed to the trees and hedges (proposed by the developer) because they want a more urban design in keeping with the neighborhood." Do city planners not know that the greenway through the center of Roland Park and the many Baltimore parks and greenways originally designed by the firm of Frederick Law Olmsted are what have made Roland Park and Baltimore so attractive and livable for generations? Fortunately, the developer and the community are working together to maintain a tree canopy at the Marianist property. But if the developer plants trees, someone must water them. With the current number of dead new trees on grassy medians in front of Roland Park houses, I worry for the future of newly planted trees. Two questions remain: Why plant trees without plans to water them? And is how we care for city trees reflective of how we care for our city?

Marine View Drive reopened after hillside fire | TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA

Marine View Drive reopened after hillside fire | TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA: "A hillside brush fire closed the 4800 block of Marine View Drive, near the Cliff House Restaurant, in Tacoma for a short time Friday afternoon. The Tacoma Fire Department received several calls about the blaze, and responded to the scene at about 1:40 p.m. with engines, a fireboat and a water tender, said fire department spokesman Dan Crutty.

The flames were under control by about 3:30 p.m., and the road was reopened. About an acre of brush was involved, Crutty said. There were no injuries or property damage, and the cause of the fire in under investigation. There’s been “discussion about some kids and a campfire that may have gotten away from them, but they don’t know for sure yet,” Crutty said."

Antigua Sun

Antigua Sun:

I read in your Tuesday issue about the large fire on Church Street and your paper mentioned the four tenders that tackled the blaze, also it was mentioned that some tenders had to go for water, I find that hard to believe.

I had mentioned a very long time ago in your paper and the Daily Observer that our Fire Brigade is poorly equipped and does not have enough vehicles.

The vehicles you have now are very good, but what is needed is a water tender that is built on the same make and model that you have now, and its capacity would be well over the 2,500 gallon and should be able to pump into a tender on site. Also there is no aerial ladder tender to handle fires in tall buildings."

Paraffin truck leak in Kent takes nearly a day to clean up

Paraffin truck leak in Kent takes nearly a day to clean up:

A truck leaked 15 to 50 gallons of paraffin, closing a freeway on ramp for nearly a day as road crews failed in one cleanup method after another, state Transportation Department officials said.

The truck driver was alerted by another motorist about 6:35 a.m. Tuesday, stopped on the State Route 167 onramp in this suburb south of Seattle and found a cap was loose, department spokeswoman Meghan N. Soptich said.

Cleanup workers initially tried sanding an 8-foot-wide, 200-foot-long stretch of the ramp that was coated with a quarter-inch of paraffin.

That didn't work, nor did scattering dirt to absorb the wax or applying a degreaser.

Workers began making headway after bringing in a hot-water truck and equipment to vacuum the melted paraffin, but the effort stalled when the truck broke down.

Finally, after a second hot-water truck was summoned, the road was reopened shortly after midnight Wednesday.

UNIFIL tanker truck crashes into car in southern Lebanon, killing four - Haaretz - Israel News

UNIFIL tanker truck Haaretz - Israel News:

UNIFIL tanker truck crashes into car in southern Lebanon, killing four
By News Agencies

Four members of a Lebanese family, including two children, were killed in southern Lebanon on Tuesday when a UN water truck lost control and rammed into their car, police said.

Two Polish soldiers belonging to the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, were slightly injured in the accident on a highway between the villages of Meiss el-Jabal and Houla, near the border with Israel, said a police spokesman on condition of anonymity because he was not allowed to speak to reporters.

A third Polish soldier was unharmed.

The spokesman said a father, mother and their 4-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son were killed in the accident.

UNIFIL said in a statement it had begun an internal inquiry to determine the circumstances of the accident.

'UNIFIL Commander Gen. Claudio Graziano is deeply saddened about this tragic loss of life and conveys his sincere sympathies and condolences to the family of the victims,' the statement said.

Poland contributes 200 troops to the 13,000-member UNIFIL. The task of the force, from 30 countries, is to implement a UN Security Council resolution that ended last summer's 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas.

Water Truck delivers water picks up Septic

SitNews - Opinion/Letter: Gravina/Sealaska/Water By Michael Nelson: How fortunate was it that he observed that his water delivery person delivered water to his tank, and then emptied his septic with the same water truck.

Viewpoints Gravina/Sealaska/Water
By Michael Nelson

July 02, 2007
Monday

Greetings from the South Pacific!!

A few days ago, I was standing on a hilltop in Fiji and although it was somewhat warm that day, a cold breeze blew up the hillside and it began lightly raining, and for a moment, I felt like I was back in Southeast Alaska. If nothing else, at least I am back in the Pacific rather than living on the Atlantic seaboard.

I have been reading SitNews daily for news from Southeast Alaska and I have been appreciative of all of the letters people have been writing because SitNews is solidly at the head of the line of allowing readers to be involved in Ketchikan without having to pay a fee to read what the latest headlines are in the First City.

As for the Gravina road issue, I read my friend Jeff Hendrickson's letter and he brings up solid points that I agree with, and I read Laine Chanteloup's letter and it was interesting to read her point of view as somewhat of a newcomer to Alaska. Good writing both of you and solid letters from good people!

As to Sealaska, I agree with Aan Kadax Tseen/Don Hoff. For those Sealaska shareholders who were so anxious to vote for an additional hundred shares of stock for themselves or their family, without working closely with Sealaska to get it right for the Tribal Elders; every time you see one of your Tribal Elders, please personally apologize to them because they are now the true left-outs. It is sad that Sealaska's shareholders have come to this place in history, in which Sealaska's Tribal Elders were symbolically left out in the snow.

Finally, water deliveries. I agree with Amber W-B. Stirring of the tank will cause the water to taste a little brackish, but the water issue reminded me of the days that I lived in Africa. Thankfully, I had a water well with an endless supply of spring water that was tested frequently and had bottled mineral water quality right out of the tap.

However, one of my neighbors in Africa was not as fortunate, as he had to have water deliveries. He was not as lucky as people in Ketchikan are, because one day, one of his children was ill and he had to stay home from work. How fortunate was it that he observed that his water delivery person delivered water to his tank, and then emptied his septic with the same water truck.

Why he never discovered it sooner, and probably his only saving grace that prevented widespread illness to his family was that he had a water distiller running full time at his house. Great things those water distillers, I use one here.

So that is it from Sunny Suva. It is a hot and muggy Sunday afternoon here. All the best.

Michael Nelson
Fiji

Received July 01, 2007 - Published July 02, 2007

About: A former resident of Ketchikan.

EDIS - Red flag warning remains in effect until 6 pm pdt thursday due to gusty winds and low humidities

[EDIS] CAL FIRE NEWS - Red flag warning remains in effect until 6 pm pdt thursday due to gusty winds and low humidities ANTELOPE VALLEY

A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM PDT THURSDAY. GUSTY WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS 20 TO 30 MPH WITH LOCAL GUSTS TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED ACROSS THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE ANTELOPE VALLEY. WINDS GUSTING TO AS MUCH 40 MPH WERE REPORTED SUNDAY EVENING UNDER SIMILAR CONDITIONS. IN ADDITION TO THE STRONG WINDS...THERE WILL BE HOT AND DRY CONDITIONS THROUGH THE PERIOD. TEMPERATURES HAVE CLIMBED TO BETWEEN 100 AND 108 DEGREES TODAY...WITH SIMILAR CONDITIONS EXPECTED EACH DAY THROUGH THURSDAY. IN ADDITION... THERE WILL BE LONG DURATIONS OF LOW HUMIDITIES IN THE TEENS AND SINGLE DIGITS.

Instruction:
A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS... LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY... AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL. PLEASE ADVISE THE APPROPRIATE OFFICIALS OR FIRE CREWS IN THE FIELD OF THIS RED FLAG WARNING.

Area: ANTELOPE VALLEY-

California Fire News

California Fire News: "NEWS - SCU - Livermore grass fire contained

Inside Bay Area - 'Livermore grass fire contained
By Roman Gokhman
Article Launched: 07/02/2007 10:48:36 AM PDT

Eighty acres of grassland were burned Sunday evening on the 7200 block of Collier Canyon Road north of Livermore. No one was hurt and no structures were damaged.

The fire started around 5 p.m. About 70 firefighters from the San Ramon Valley Protection District, Alameda County Fire Department and Cal Fire — 10 engines, a water tender, a helicopter, one air tanker, two bulldozers and two hand crews — responded. It took crews until 6:15 p.m. to have the blaze under control.

San Ramon Battalion Chief John Viera said an investigation has been completed and the cause of the fire was undetermined."

NEWS - LODD - Crews tackle Utah wildfire that killed 3

Crews tackle Utah wildfire that killed 3 - NewsFlash:

The Associated Press

NEOLA, Utah (AP) — A wildfire that has scorched about 46 square miles in northeastern Utah and killed three people has prompted the evacuation of hundreds of people from nearby towns and forced authorities to close a national forest to the public.

The fire started Friday morning north of Neola, about 100 miles east of Salt Lake City, and on Sunday morning crews had it about 5 percent contained. The cause had not been determined.

The fire began spreading into the Ashley National Forest Sunday afternoon, prompting federal authorities to close it to public use.

The small communities of Whiterocks, Farm Creek, Paradise and Tridell were evacuated Saturday. Some residents in Tridell had been allowed to return.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said about 300 people are under a mandatory evacuation. Another 150 homes in Dryfork Canyon, about 8 miles northeast of the fire, could be threatened by Tuesday, said Derek Jensen, a FEMA spokesman.

"We are seeing extreme fire behavior and the potential for growth is still there. We haven't had a change in weather or change in fuel type or dryness," said Louis Haynes, a spokesman for the national forest.

At nearby Vernal, there was little wind Sunday, the temperatures hit 95 degrees and midday humidity was only 10 percent, according to the National Weather Service.

Edson Gardner, of Fort Duchesne, went to Farm Creek to evacuate his mother, whose home was burned to the ground.

"It came down the canyon like a herd of horses," he said Saturday. "The sheriff told us we had five minutes to get out."

Uintah County Sheriff Jeff Merrell said buildings had been destroyed but he didn't have a count.