- Ruthsarian :
- Intro/Facts :
- Interviews :
- Mulch Poems :
- Mulch Fire Bumper Stickers :
- Cows :
- What is Fire? :
- Contact :
- Chuck Norris: The Solution :
- Mulching Links :
The Solution(s)
Everybody has their theories about how to extinguish the mulch fire. Some people say douse it with water. Others say we should break it up into smaller piles and extinguish the small "manageable" piles one-by-one. We've hired "experts" and "consultants" and debated the issue ad nauseam. It's time for action, and I know what to do. We need to:
A) Bomb the mulch fire into oblivion
OR
B) Bring in Chuck Norris
It's as easy as that. No screwing around. No debating. No litigation. And NO NEED FOR ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS. There are several well-equipped military installations within a short laser-guided strike of San Antonio. I guarantee that if we implement an air-stike on the mulch heap, it will turn tail and flee. However, there is the chance that high explosives will not work. If that is the case, there is only one option:
Bring in Chuck Norris
Heck yeah...Chuck Norris could decimate the mulch fire with a withering stare, but would probably give it a good roundhouse kick as fair warning to other rebellious mulch heaps. It's a flippin' shame they didn't call Chuck Norris to begin with. He lives for this sort of stuff.
Here's an illustration of what would happen:
Chuck Norris vs. Mulch Heap
FIRE UPDATE! (3/14/07)
Although Chuck Norris has not yet responded to our cry for help, (dadgummit) there are apparently some people who are working to resolve this situation. I'm not talking about the "firefighters" who have been working on the fire for nearly three months. I'm talking about a different group that needs to be heard. I received a very compelling email yesterday from what may end up being the greatest foe yet to the mulch fire. A representative from CAFSCO (Compressed Air Foam) emailed me advising they could put out the fire by using foam! In fact (you're NOT going to believe this) they have already successfully put out a mulch fire! HAHAHAHA! Why the heck haven't we listened to them? The pictures below make mulch-fire suppression look EASY.
I was a little skeptical at first but I think our local government should consider consulting with them! Why? Because the current "firefighters" are washing toxic material into our acquifer. CAFSCO co-owner Lisa LaFosse advised that by using their firefighting foam, (something akin to shaving cream) we could simultaneously suppress the smoke and put out the fire. Sounds good to me! Sounds like fun! The email that was sent to me included some pretty amazing pictures (below)...HEY! Politicians! Mr. Zumwalt! READ THIS! (verbatim from LaFosse, regarding the recent Glen Rose fire):
Glen Rose Mulch Fire, Somervell County, TX
(Click to expand)
On February 13, CAFS was used to control a large mulch fire off of FM56 in Somervell County at the Glen Rose landfill.
The mulch pile was nearly as large as the Helotes disaster. The Somervell FD fought the fire with water applications for 3 days until a cold front wind shift caused the city of Glen Rose to be covered in dense toxic smoke.
Mark Cummins & Lisa LaFosse' of Cresson FD were called by the FC Craig Howard of Brazos Point to size-up the situation. We arrived on scene at 1200 hrs. We spoke with the Fire Marshall & Commissioner Lloyd Wert, of Somervell. We devised a 'Fire Plan'. The Fire Plan was to call the County Judge and have him declare a 'disaster'. When the County Judge declared the mulch pile a 'disaster', Fire Marshall Wirt then called the Texas Forest Service and ordered 500 gallons of the 'Prison Class A Foam'. The 'Prison Class A Foam' was then brought to the scene. Attack 30. from Cresson FD is equipped with a large CAFS unit, and arrived on scene at 15:30.
The 40 foot high flaming mulch pile was covered with a durable CAFS foam blanket which STOPPED the toxic smoke emissions, ash, and water run-off from previous water pumping attempts to extinguish the deep seated fire. The dozers and loaders were protected from the wood dust, smoke and flames as the fire was dug out and extinguished with the CAFS foam. Attack 30 used a total of 27,000 gallons of water which was expanded into 540,000 gallons of dense CAFS foam. The foam blanket covered the fire, sealing in the smoke and large volumes of CO2 gasses (caused by the fire), which helped extinguished the deep seated combustion.
There was no polluted water run-off.
CAFS was used to protect the heavy equipment operators, firefighters on scene, and citizens exposed to the toxic ash and smoke being released into the air during the dig-out operations. The mulch was totally extinguished by the foam application before being loaded into the dump trucks. The mulch was hauled to an unloading area where it was spread out into a thin layer. No further fire extinguishment was required.
The mountain of mulch was TOTALLY extinguished and demobilized in a little more than 24 hours from the first call for the CAFS foam. The foam was requested by the county Fire Marshal to protect the citizens from the toxic wood smoke. There was ZERO pollution of surface or ground water and the citizens of Somervell County are breathing CLEAN air again.
The cost to the citizens of Glen Rose was very minimal because the county employees and volunteer firefighters provided man-power and CAFS equipment. Thanks to Fire Marshall Lloyd Wert for choosing CAFS to clean the air and prevent water contamination. Thank you Chief Ingram for letting us assist with mutual aid.
CAFS is NOT the OLD FOAM or surfactants that have been used in the past. CAFS is a TOTALLY different technology. The foam soaks into the wood and does NOT flush the toxic products of combustion into the soil. This is only ONE of the reasons that CAFS foam was given the hazard reduction classification by the Texas Senate Bill 1610. No OTHER foam product has EVER been given such an award.
The official State Environmental Agency (TCEQ) Photos of the Helotes mulch fire below, show very dangerous placement of the track hoes with live fire below their position on the side slope of the pile. There is no evidence of any engineering controls being used to protect the operator.
With CAFS we can protect the workers, citizens, and the environment.
Respectfully,
Lisa LaFosse'
FF 3019
817-584-4500
CAFSCO.com