PHOTO COURTESY OF OREGON MILITARY DEPARTMENT
Members of the Oregon National Guard are assisting efforts to contain the wildfires burning in much of Central Oregon.
Among those on the scene near Madras is Oregon Army National Guard Lt. Col. Alan Gronewald, a CH-47 Chinook helicopter pilot and commander of the Pendleton-based Bravo Company, 1-168 Aviation. Two Oregon National Guard Blackhawk helicopters and two CH-47 Chinook helicopters have been sent over to support local responders in containing the fire.
The Blackhawks are equipped with buckets that can carry about 780 gallons of water at one time, while the Chinook helicopters can drop about 1,400 gallons of water.
KATU has a closer look at the fires burning in Oregon.
