On May 13, 2021, the Black Fire in New Mexico started, and it would have many effects on people’s lives. One of those people was fire watcher Philip Connors, who works to spot fires, then alerts the dispatch. As Connors knows, once a fire gets started it needs to be put out as soon as possible.
Connors was watching the Gila National Forest to report the first sight of flames from a 35-foot tall forest tower. After he sighted smoke out the tower’s window, he watched until the fire was too close to be safe, and he was then forced to evacuate.
“The essence of the job is to stay awake and look out the window and alert the dispatch office at the first sign of smoke,” Phillip Connors explained. Connors is also a writer and loves the forest, which has been his home for 20 years. Connors knows that the forest is changing and that it will be even more different after the fire.
After Connors saw the sheer size of the fire he said, “I’m not ashamed to admit I hugged a few trees before I left, some of my favorites.”
The Black Fire itself is a huge burn, otherwise known as a wildfire. It’s where everything is so dry and hot that it just begins to burn. Philip Connors noted the dry conditions, stating that “with every footstep, I was sending up little puffs of powder from the soil”.
When Connors first started working as a fire watcher, he thought his job was more of a chance to play and see nice views. But as time went on, he started to realize his job was at the front lines of climate change and global warming.
As a result of global warming and the dry climate, Phillip has been facing tough times. There may be many of these times in the future, but these fires are not always bad.
Connors was watching the Gila National Forest to report the first sight of flames from a 35-foot tall forest tower. After he sighted smoke out the tower’s window, he watched until the fire was too close to be safe, and he was then forced to evacuate.
“The essence of the job is to stay awake and look out the window and alert the dispatch office at the first sign of smoke,” Phillip Connors explained. Connors is also a writer and loves the forest, which has been his home for 20 years. Connors knows that the forest is changing and that it will be even more different after the fire.
After Connors saw the sheer size of the fire he said, “I’m not ashamed to admit I hugged a few trees before I left, some of my favorites.”
The Black Fire itself is a huge burn, otherwise known as a wildfire. It’s where everything is so dry and hot that it just begins to burn. Philip Connors noted the dry conditions, stating that “with every footstep, I was sending up little puffs of powder from the soil”.
When Connors first started working as a fire watcher, he thought his job was more of a chance to play and see nice views. But as time went on, he started to realize his job was at the front lines of climate change and global warming.
As a result of global warming and the dry climate, Phillip has been facing tough times. There may be many of these times in the future, but these fires are not always bad.
