Firefighter: Cowiche wildfires "then" & "now"
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COWICHE, Wash. -- Firemen gathered to protect a home at the top of Kail Road from a twenty acre spreading wildfire. It started on Cowiche Mill Road and Sunset Way. But for one firefighter, this was no routine call.
West Valley Firefighter, Michael Rhine said, “When we got the call and it was a Cowiche Mill fire, yeah, it was kind of a little bit of adrenaline rush for me.”
That’s because Rhine was here two years ago and it’s an event he says he will never forget.
"I was trapped in the back of a burning engine in a wildfire that was out of control. That was definitely a majorly defining moment in my life escaping-nearly escaping near death situation,” remember Rhine.
Luckily, fire crews at Wednesday afternoon’s 20 acre brush fire were well equipped and prepared. They had the blaze under control in a few hours partially due the helicopter was brought in to quickly douse the flames.
“We are preparing ourselves for a pretty nasty season because all this rain is creating a huge amount of fuel out there…more so than normal. So we’re expecting it to get bad,” said Yakima Fire Captain Tom Schneider.
Despite the close call Rhine's had in the past, he says it's important for him to continue fighting flames this fire season, “to not give up and continue to fight and learn something from it and there was a lot to be learned.”
While firefighters are still investigating the cause of the fire, they do believe it started on private property and made it's way to land owned by the Department of Natural Resources. Fortunately, no one was injured and no property damages were reported.
West Valley Firefighter, Michael Rhine said, “When we got the call and it was a Cowiche Mill fire, yeah, it was kind of a little bit of adrenaline rush for me.”
That’s because Rhine was here two years ago and it’s an event he says he will never forget.
"I was trapped in the back of a burning engine in a wildfire that was out of control. That was definitely a majorly defining moment in my life escaping-nearly escaping near death situation,” remember Rhine.
Luckily, fire crews at Wednesday afternoon’s 20 acre brush fire were well equipped and prepared. They had the blaze under control in a few hours partially due the helicopter was brought in to quickly douse the flames.
“We are preparing ourselves for a pretty nasty season because all this rain is creating a huge amount of fuel out there…more so than normal. So we’re expecting it to get bad,” said Yakima Fire Captain Tom Schneider.
Despite the close call Rhine's had in the past, he says it's important for him to continue fighting flames this fire season, “to not give up and continue to fight and learn something from it and there was a lot to be learned.”
While firefighters are still investigating the cause of the fire, they do believe it started on private property and made it's way to land owned by the Department of Natural Resources. Fortunately, no one was injured and no property damages were reported.
