He’s a firefighter, like hundreds of firefighters from the Central and South Coasts.
But Brian Pontes doesn’t use a fire truck to get to blazes. The Santa Barbara County man is part of a rare breed of firefighters who literally drops in on brush, and forest fires in some of the most remote parts of Western America.
The Santa Maria man has been a firefighter for more than two decades, and a smoke jumper since 2003.
Last week, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management firefighter made a rare jump in Santa Barbara County. It was even more unusual because it wasn’t onshore, but was offshore, in the Channel Islands.
Lightning had sparked a hard to reach blaze in Scorpion Canyon, on Santa Cruz Island. Pontes was one of four smoke jumpers dropped onto the island to fight the fire. They contained the less than an acre blaze in a day, but spent the next few days mopping up hot spots.
Pontes says what was named the Potato Fire was a perfect example of how smoke jumpers are useful in topping hard to reach blazes. It had the potential to grow when the wind kicked up last week, but by then the firefighters already had the upper hand on the blaze.
Pontes is part of a team which can end up fighting blazes almost anywhere in the Western U.S. It sounds dangerous. Not only are you parachuting out of a plane, you are parachuting into rugged, remote areas where there’s an out of control fire. But, he says while he averages about a dozen jumps a year, the training comes into play, and he’s never suffered an injury.
So, what’s it like when you jump out of the plane, and are headed towards the fire? Pontes says you are focused on the technical aspects of the jump at first, but admits you also appreciate the spectacular view. He says seeing the fires from above, and scouting the terrain gives them the chance to figure out the best plan of attack.
Pontes says the smoke jumpers often end up doing conventional firefighting duties as well, but he admits there’s something pretty incredible about jumping a fire.
