Trending Topics

Watch: CAL FIRE’s new C-130 tanker responds to first fire

Tanker 122 dropped 8,000 gallons of retardant on the Record Fire in Riverside County

By David Caraccio
Merced Sun-Star

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, Calif. — A new video shows the first fully operational C-130H delivering 8,000 gallons of retardant on the Record Fire in Riverside County, marking its inaugural firefighting mission over the weekend.

Tanker 122 has joined the fleet of the state’s firefighting agency, CAL FIRE.

“This marks an historic milestone in the agency’s ongoing commitment to CA!” Cal Fire chief Joe Tylor said on X.

California officials waited more than five years to get the first of several military aircraft they were promised by the federal government to help fight fires across the state.

(c)2024 the Merced Sun-Star (Merced, Calif.)
Visit the Merced Sun-Star (Merced, Calif.) at www.mercedsunstar.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Trending
The Sikorsky S-70i Firehawk will bolster the county fire department’s aerial firefighting fleet
West Virginia University researchers are testing a system that would allow satellites to detect wildfires and reposition themselves to provide crews with more frequent data on fire behavior
UC Merced researchers found the share of homes destroyed after wildfire exposure rose from about 3% to 18% over two decades despite efforts to harden properties
Hambden Township officials face scrutiny over financial oversight of a fire department that receives nearly $800,000 a year in public funding