Fire crews across the Northwest are dealing with sizzling hot temperatures not just from flames, but also a general heat wave.
You can't wear shorts and a T-shirt to a firefight. So how do you stay cool and functional on the fire line when the thermometer is pushing triple digits? U.S. Forest Service spokesman Joe Anderson says "the main thing is to stay hydrated" and pace yourself.
"They don't want to get exhausted. So they work at a pace that is equal to the temperature and the amount of energy they're putting out," Anderson says. "And then they monitor themselves all the time."
Anderson says that strategy is working in Entiat, Washington. That's the scene of the largest wildfire currently burning in the Northwest. It has already chewed through 34-square-miles of grass and scattered timber.
Copyright 2014 Northwest News Network
