A verbal picture of initial attack

Please bear with me as I experiment with painting a verbal picture of tankers and helos working fires without relying on photos or videos.

I offer these two hypothetical stories of air resources used in initial attack. In both stories, residences are not threatened and there are no evacuations.

Perhaps there is a small fire somewhere in California. Doesn't matter where. Someone reports the fire, doesn't matter who, and the nearest CAL Fire base sends up their S-2T tanker(s) and OV-10 air attack plane. Ground crews are deployed, but the S-2T tanker(s) get there first, it is only a very short flight to the fire. Perhaps the fire is an acre or two. The tankers start laying retardant lines around the fire, go back to their base, reload and go back. By this time, the OV-10 Air Attack plane has arrived. The ground crews arrive and start building line. The S-2T tankers have reloaded and returned. Perhaps by the third load, the S-2T's have built a retardant line around the fire and Air Attack releases them from the fire. Their job is done. The ground crews contain the fire not long after. Perhaps only three or four have passed since the fire was first reported. The fire is contained, ground crews are their mopping up. The fire will soon be under control.

There is a small fire reported early one afternoon in a forested area during the spring fire season in a mid-atlantic state. The fire burns in an area that is difficult to access by ground crews, and fuels are dry making this a tricky fire that could grow into a major fire. SEATs are on contract. Two are already loaded and ready to go from a base only a few minutes flight time from the fire. The State Forest Fire Service mobilizes crews to go to the fire along with volunteer municipal firefighters under mutual aid. The SEATs are there early on, bombing the fire with their load. A helo with a bucket arrives. Everyone, on the air and on the ground, work together to contain the fire before it "got it" and became a major fire. The fire is well on the way to being contained by nightfall when the air operations are called off. Ground crews stay over night. Early the next morning, the fire is 100 percent contained. By mid-day the fire is under control.