JAMESTOWN, Calif. — Under the searing heat of the sun in Jamestown, firefighter Paul Herman finally gets a break in the middle of a 24-hour shift.
Herman has spent nine years as a firefighter for Cal Fire in Butte County and says the key to battling these conditions is staying hydrated.
"Hydrate early and then hydrate the night before and then we keep on using DripDrop, which is an electrolyte replacement. We use a two-to-one ratio; two waters to one supplement," said Herman.
Firefighters were in a neighborhood Friday mopping up hot spots just a few hundred feet away from a street filled with homes. The fire hose was stretched about 400 feet up a steep hill.
"We are rotating our folks into the shade so that they have a little bit of a break, a reprieve from the sun, as well as ensuring they have plenty of hydration with them," said Cal Fire spokesperson, Emily Kilgore.
Add 45 pounds of gear to that and it makes it more difficult for firefighters like Michael Gagliasso. While it's not easy, he says it's part of the job.
"Pretty warm, little steep terrain, but pretty usual where the fires are," said Gagliasso, who's worked three years as a firefighter.
Bottom line, no matter how hot it may get, these firefighters will stay on the front lines, putting out hotspots and saving homes.
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