Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 14, 1995 TAG: 9504140047
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JAN VERTEFEUILLE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Fire crews from out West are being kept at the Salem Civic Center over the Easter weekend in case they're needed here or to battle forest fires that are springing up across the South.
Fires continue to burn in the Craig County portion of the national forest, but they're fully contained, circled by firebreaks to prevent flames from spreading.
"There's a lot of fire left in there," Forest Service spokesman Bob Miller said Thursday. But "we're not much concerned about these fires escaping."
Firefighters are concerned about what could happen this weekend, when sunny, dry weather and human activity in the woods increase. Outdoor burning bans are in effect for most of Southwest Virginia.
Three fires began in separate parts of the forest Saturday. By Thursday, they had burned 5,030 acres, lower than a mid-week estimate of 5,170.
While flames threatened close to 60 homes along Virginia 311 and 621 when the blazes began, all are now out of danger.
An arson task force is investigating the cause of the blazes.
Additional fires have broken out in the area of the three original blazes this week, but they've all been determined to be "spot overs," where burning bark or pine cones have blown away and started new fires, said Woody Lipps, a law enforcement officer for the forest.
Of the 800 firefighters here during the peak of the blazes, 320 have been dispatched to other forest fires farther south, and 480 remain in Salem. Volunteers and local fire companies battled the blaze early on and protected the homes of people living near the forest, and specialized crews from around the country were flown in Monday to help.
Nine 20-person crews are working on the "hot spots" in Craig and mopping up - reseeding, chopping stumps and making sure the lines containing the fires remain intact.
Another five crews are spread out along a 300-mile corridor in the national forest, ready to combat any new fires that break out in the parched woods.
"They're pre-positioned to knock down new fires," Miller said. "Fire conditions are going to be back in the danger zone in just a day or two."
Other crews are stationed at the Salem Civic Center as an "initial attack squad" in case the Craig fires start getting hot again. The civic center also is acting as a staging area for the Southeastern United States, where similarly dry conditions have helped fuel fires in Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina and Alabama. The U.S. Forest Service is reluctant to send crews home to New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming and other states, just to recall them in a few days if they're needed.
To help relieve the boredom of hanging around the civic center - firefighters can't leave, in case they're needed quickly - the Forest Service is bringing in a wide screen TV, videos and basketball hoops. Sunday, a local chaplain will hold an interdenominational Easter service for the crews.
"We're trying to provide what few creature comforts we can," Miller said.
The American Red Cross has provided cots for the firefighters to sleep on in the main auditorium as they work shifts around the clock fighting the fires.
The civic center is available to them as long as they need it, assistant director John Saunders said. A craft show will be held there Thursday, but Saunders said arrangements have been made to let firefighters pitch tents on the grounds if they're still here.
by CNB