William R. Richardson: “imagine being face to face with a powerful beast that can frighten the most ferocious bear. This beast is a forest fire…”

“imagine being face to face with a powerful beast that can frighten the most ferocious bear. This beast is a forest fire, and the U.S. Forest Service has recently confronted two immense fires in northern New Mexico. The U.S. Forest Service in our State has done a splendid job in containing these two fires and they deserve great credit. I want to express my appreciation to Chip Cartwright, the regional forester in New Mexico; Leonard Lucero, the head of the Carson Forest; Al Defler, head of the Santa Fe Forest; and Gary Schiff of the Forest Service, whose well-executed planning led to the containment of these fires which threatened our communities and our treasured forests in New Mexico. I also want to include for the Record a step-by-step analysis of exactly what the Forest Service has to do to contain a forest fire, and I will submit that information for the Record. The statement highlights the mission of the Forest Service, which involved air attacks, the safe evacuation of residents, the coordination of hundreds of firefighting crews, and the overall exceptional communication that was coordinated by the Service.”