Summer is a time of outdoor fun and high temperatures. Camping, hiking, even your backyard barbecue can be a blast, but there is also potential danger in these dry conditions. Wildfires occur every year all over North America. While some are caused by lightning strikes, many are attributed to man’s carelessness. Enter a hero, someone who can lead the charge against negligence in the wild. His name? Smokey the Bear.
Smokey’s legacy began in 1950 in the Capitan Mountains of New Mexico, USA. Smoke was spotted from a fire tower and called in to the nearest ranger station. Crews arriving on the scene discovered a major blaze sweeping through the area, driven by strong winds. More help was needed to battle the flames and it arrived in the form of more rangers, soldiers, Native American crews, New Mexico State Game crews, and even civilian volunteers. All joined together to control and contain the fire. In the middle of the fight, crew members reported seeing a lone bear cub near the fire line. Fearing the cub’s mother might attack if they approached the youngster, the men left him alone and continued their work.
The fire was not going down easy. Several soldiers were caught behind the fire line and escaped only by laying prone on a rocky surface until the flames had burned past them. Their clothes were scorched, but they lived to tell their tale and the fire was, at last, subdued.
Meanwhile, the soldiers again encountered the little bear and found him in bad shape. Having tried to escape the flames by climbing a tree, the cub had suffered severe burns on his paws and hind legs. They managed to get him down from the charred ruin of the tree and a local rancher who had helped with the firefight took the animal home. A Ranger stepped in to get the bear flown to a vet where the little guy could get the medical attention he needed.
As word of the fire – and the bear cub – spread, United Press and Associated Press picked up the story. People from all over the US wrote and called to check on the bear. Seeing a great opportunity to get the nation behind forest fire awareness and prevention, the State Game Warden contacted the Chief of the Forest Service about creating a public program. He got the thumbs up from the Feds and the little bear cub found himself bound for Washington, D.C. where he would reside in the National Zoo. He was dubbed Smokey the Bear and became a living symbol of protecting the beauty of the forests.
As you roast those marshmallows around your campfire, snub out your after dinner smoke, or light up the night sky to celebrate your independence, think of Smokey and remember what he represents. Take care to extinguish your flames so that the forests that you enjoy can be there for the next generation to love. Because only you… well, you know the rest.
Images via USFWS Headquarters, Nicholas_T
