“I think so,” replied Kotok. “My map shows twenty-three fires.”
“How did you locate them without any landmarks?” asked Bill.
“You may not realize it, but I have been operating in this country for a long time,” explained Kotok. “I have been fighting fires here for the past seven years. These mountains all mean something to me and they all have different shapes, covering of trees or rocky formations by which each is distinguished from the others.”
“They all looked alike to me,” said Bill. “Perhaps, before the season is over, I will be able to tell one from the others, but not now.”
The patrols over the forest continued day after day. As the planes landed, the master map in the operations office became more and more spotted with its colored pins. The number of pins constantly increased, but the colors changed with the condition of the fire. Everyone was working to have the pins all black as soon as possible, for black pins meant that the fire was out and therefore presented no further danger.
The truck train arrived and the added equipment which it carried made operations easier for everyone. The enlisted men pitched a camp in a grove of trees adjacent to the flying field. The tents were all in the shade. A large tent with a fly covered the kitchen and storeroom. Wooden tables and benches were built for messing. A large tent fly was erected over the tables to provide shade and keep out rain, if any should come.
Radio stations were established at Eugene, Portland and Medford. With the establishment of these stations, the reports of fires were almost instantly received and sent to the forest supervisor concerned. The smaller sets were sent out to the forest headquarters for use of the amateurs. This further expedited the reporting of fires, as it was no longer necessary to rely on the telephone lines, which in some cases might lead through as many as five or six centrals.
The amateurs operating the sets in the forests were usually boys on vacation from school or college. They were eager to get out into the woods and much interested in the radio. Their enthusiasm and interest materially assisted in the efficiency of the radio. Accordingly, it was very seldom that an amateur station was reported as being out of order or the operator not on the job.