Marble Mountain Helicopter Helped Save Many Homes During Rolling Hills Rd Fire

Two homes were lost on Friday during the Rolling Hills Road Fire in Green, but it easily could have been many more had it not been for 5MM. 5MM is a Type 2 helicopter and part of the Marble Mountain Helicopters team. The 5MM is the last three digits of the tail number on the helicopter. Local resident Tracy Loomis reported the helicopter was making 1 1/2 minute turnaround times between picking up a load of water from the nearby South Umpqua River, dropping it on the fire, and returning to the river again. The bucket holds about 300-350 gallons of water. 5MM was able to stop the advancing fire right before it got to a whole row of homes. Besides providing crucial water drops on the fire, the helicopter often has the best view of the fire and where it's advancing. Last night, for example, the pilot was communicating information to Kyle Reed of DFPA regarding which way the fire was spreading (or not spreading) so he was able to relay that information to Douglas County Sheriffs Office for evacuation purposes. According to DFPA, Marble Mountain Helicopters has three type 2 helicopters. One is on contract with DFPA and the other two are state-wide severity resources for ODF. One is stationed in Myrtle creek and the other one is stationed in Grants Pass. Here is a video we recorded of 5MM saving a row of homes from approaching flames Friday during the Rolling Hills Road Fire in Green: https://www.roseburgtracker.com/posts/60fc6dd7f507870004753f2a Water Capacity of helicopters: Type 1 - ~ 700 gallons of water Type 2- ~ 350 gallons of water Type 3 - ~ 180 gallons of water