Thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy after midnight. Low 72F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Thunderstorms early, then mainly cloudy after midnight. Low 72F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%.

Florida Forest Service senior ranger Harvey Sellers, one of more than 30 men and women working on a prescribed burn in southern Citrus County in 2017, uses a drip torch to start a fire that will create a fire break, or a perimeter past which fire has trouble advancing, for firefighters to work within the Withlacoochee State Forest’s Citrus tract. Drip torches are fueled with a mixture of diesel and gasoline and make an efficient tool to start a fire.

Florida Forest Service senior ranger Harvey Sellers, one of more than 30 men and women working on a prescribed burn in southern Citrus County in 2017, uses a drip torch to start a fire that will create a fire break, or a perimeter past which fire has trouble advancing, for firefighters to work within the Withlacoochee State Forest’s Citrus tract. Drip torches are fueled with a mixture of diesel and gasoline and make an efficient tool to start a fire.

In the Western United States, helicopters and other aircraft are the equipment workhorses in fighting forest fires. But did you know that in Florida, the tractor plow bulldozer is the go-to firefighting tool for containing forest fires?

You can learn about the “dozer,” controlled burns and what a wildfire needs to keep blazing, as well as much more, at a talk, “How the Florida Forest Service Fights Fires,” Aug. 17 at 10 a.m. at the Floral City Public Library.

Jonce Strickland, a senior ranger with the Withlacoochee Forestry Center, said he will explain how the Forest Service uses the tractor plow unit to fight forest fires by pulling the fuel away from the fire.

He explained that fire needs oxygen, heat and fuel to survive. Take away one of the components and the fire goes out.

During a forest fire, the Forest Service goes out with its dozer and pushes and pulls down a line of trees and brush, creating a fire break of four to five feet or more, eliminating the fire’s fuel source. Thus, the fire may be slowed or even go out.

The Forest Service does have air equipment. Strickland said there’s a “Huey” helicopter in Ocala, as well as in other locations.

But the Forest Service prefers to not fight fires but to manage forest growth through controlled burns, among other measures.

“Fire is a tool,” Strickland said. “It’s the cheapest tool as far as land management goes.”

Although he admits that “There is no fire that’s in a completely controlled environment,” the Forest Service “does have the know-how and the backup,” he said.

He said people from the North who move to Florida may not realize the importance of managing forest land through controlled burns. These critical burns may not be a firefighting tool used in Northern forests.

On a smaller scale, a tool for fire prevention for homeowners is to make sure the brush is cleared away from your home, Strickland said. Make sure that pine needles are not in your home’s gutters or flower beds, and keep firewood stacked away from the house.

If a fire is approaching, turn on your sprinkler system.

Although fighting fires is serious business, it’s something Strickland appears to enjoy.

He told how when he graduated from high school, he was pondering enlisting in the Army. But he had a chance to join the Forest Service, and when he went out on his first fire, “I was hooked. It’s so fun on a big piece of equipment, being outdoors and running through the woods,” he said.

During the summers, Strickland often has helped out firefighters in western states, such as California, Oregon, and Montana, felling trees as part of a hand crew.

He will be joined by his firefighting partner, as well as his supervisor, at the Floral City Library talk. He said he will have fire prevention fliers available. The Floral City Public Library is at 8360 E. Orange Ave. The library’s phone number is 352-726-3671.