Fire on the Mountain

Cetraro, Italy

As we were moving Berkeley East north, we saw smoke in the distance. It looked as though our destination was north of the fire, and the wind was blowing south, so we figured we were clear.

Hours later, we could see flames, fire on the mountain behind our planned anchorage. And as we were dropping BE’s anchor, a helicopter hovered right in front of us to fill its water bucket.

The helicopter took pass after pass, filling its bucket and spraying us with salt water as it flew over Berkeley East. The noise was deafening; the sight was amazing. We considered moving on, but it was late, and the next possible place for the night was 20 miles away.

Then came the airplane, an amphibious aircraft with tanks that are filled by skimming the water. The airplane would douse the ridgeline while the helicopter dropped its bucket on a particular area in flames.

They worked in tandem for hours, until the sun began to set. We watched in awe as they circled, filled, dropped, over and over, the airplane appearing to barely miss the masts of the boats in the adjacent marina.

When they finally stopped, we wondered what started the fire in the first place? Hot, dry conditions, a cigarette tossed from a passing car? It climbed up the hillside, with homes in its path. Without the water bombers, it would have been devastating.

We watched into the night as hot spots sparked to life, but in the light of day, the fire was gone, all the structures had been saved, just a black scar on the ridge remained.

PREVIOUS COMMENTS

24 Sep 2017

Linda

Wow. The things you see while sailing! Always a changing landscape