The danger of fire when logging

I have not had many experiences with wildfire in my career and in my time at Oregon State. My first exposure to wildfire was this past summer when I worked on the OSU student logging crew.  As loggers we had to undergo basic wildland firefighting training, and were responsible for the initial attack in the event of a wildfire starting in our area. The equipment that we used in our logging operation posed a high risk to starting a wildfire, it seemed that everyone was constantly talking about the risk of starting a fire.
This summer conditions were especially bad and the fear of starting a fire was extremely high. The only piece of the fire triangle missing was the ignition source and a logging operation is full of potential ignitions. All chainsaw operators had to carry a fire extinguisher and a shovel in case of a fire. We also had inspections from ODFW to ensure we were compliant with all fire regulations. In addition to all this, there was also a change in the mindset of every logger on the crew. All the activity’s taking place in the logging operation were now viewed from the risk of causing a fire. Everyone was constantly monitoring there co-workers to ensure that we reduced the risk of a fire to an absolute minimum. I learned a lot from all this and gained a new respect for all the efforts that are made by forestry workers to prevent a wildfire from happening.
The following image is an example of how a fire can be started in a logging operation through cable friction.
Source: Jeff Wimer, Oregon State University