Battle of the Blazes

The Northwest is on fire. Since the beginning of August, 600,000 acres in six states have been ignited by lightning storms and kept ablaze by erratic summer winds. The raging flames have consumed prime lumber land in Oregon and Idaho, as well as parts of Washington, Montana, Utah and Nevada.

Remote airstrips in the Oregon hills and Idaho flats are buzzing with traffic as planes from as far away as Maine and Tennessee swoop in, bringing assistance from all over the country and swelling the local fire-fighting ranks from 6,000 to 17,000. Four C-141 transports loaned by the U.S. Air Force...

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