Tens of thousands of people in the Los Angeles area have been forced to flee their homes as multiple wind-driven wildfires spiral out of control.
Drivers were forced to abandon their cars on the Pacific Palisades Highway, where authorities confirmed the structures had been destroyed.
While crews battle the flames on the ground, pilots and planes from British Columbia-based Coulson Group are at the center of the dogfight.
“During the Palisades fire, our fleet of Chinooks and S-76s worked all day,” CEO Wayne Coulson told Global News Tuesday evening.
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“We put several hundred drops on the fire today. And… we also fly at night.
Coulson said three Chinooks were fighting the fire and an intelligence helicopter.
He said operations were delayed when the fire first broke out because gusty winds made flying too dangerous.
“He was several hours early,” Coulson said of the Palisades fire.
“I don’t think we started flying until after lunch (Tuesday), when the winds died down so we could actually get to the fire and start working on it. So he was one step ahead of us. The winds picked up late in the day, but there are 400 weather stations around this fire. So, I guess some valleys have smoothed out. So we can enter there.
Coulson said they couldn’t fly in winds above 50 miles per hour and in some areas winds were recorded close to 100 miles per hour.
He added that some Canadian pilots fly these planes, which are stationed in the Los Angeles basin 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.
“We are the first line of defense on every 911 wildfire call,” Coulson added.
“In our world, one of the magics of these planes is that we’ll be on structure protection all night. So, because these are high-volume aircraft weighing 3,000 gallons per load, it’s like six fire trucks showing up at your house every 10 minutes.
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