August 29th, 2015: Foiled Forest Fire

[xoxoxoBruce]

You'd have to be Rip Van Winkle to not be aware of the plague of fires in the western states, due to shifted weather patterns, and drought. The US Forest service can't protect critical remote, often historical, structures, without clearing a wide swath of forest around them. That would be expensive and impractical.

NEZ PERCE, Idaho – Officials with the National Forest Service are protecting lookouts and cabins across the Nez Perce-Clearwater Forest from wildfire activity in a rather strange way. Officials said they have wrapped the structures in foil to protect them. Forest Service officials estimated that a roll of the multiple-ply foil costs $398. They also used duct tape to seal the foil, and often line rocks at the bottom to hold it down.

And no WD-40.

Forest Service crews began using the foil in the late 1980s to protect historic cabins and lookout towers that cannot be replaced. They called the success rate of Shelterwrap "tremendous" in Idaho.

I kind of think it looks like a foiled potato ready for the campfire, but I guess that works out.
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