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Deseret News
Deseret News archives: Devastating Western wildfires in 1910 forced many changes
By Chris Miller,
1 day ago
The front page of the Deseret News on Aug. 22, 1910, as forest fires overwhelmed communities in the West and Northwest.
A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives .
In late summer 1910, a series of wildfires swept through parts of Idaho, Montana and Washington, killing at least 87 people and burning some 3 million acres. It was referred to the “Big Blowup,” the “Big Burn” and “Great Fire of 1910.”
The fires, which flared up on Aug. 20-21, killed 87 people and torched 4,700 square miles of land, historians note. It changed how wildfires were monitored in the nation. At one point, as many as 3,000 fires of different sizes were burning, many sparked by trains that threw sparks from their rails. Some communities were simply overwhelmed.
The U.S. Forest Service saw the need for early detection following those wildfires, which drew top headlines in the Deseret News and other newspapers. Things like fire lookout towers, walkie-talkies and air support were developed in the years that followed.
One of the heroes of that day was Ranger Ed Pulaski. On Aug. 20, the date of the “Big Blowup” near Wallace, Idaho, Pulaski was credited with saving all but five of his 45-man crew.
The ranger is also credited with developing the Pulaski tool used by most wildland firefighters today.
Firefighters Alex Keller, left, and Jacey Mesteth sharpen their tools as they wait to be deployed to a fire line Saturday, July 19, 2014, in Winthrop, Wash. | Elaine Thompson, Associated Press
The potential for wildfires in the West has only increased. In 2000, wildfires burned more than 6.7 million acres in 11 states. The situation was bad again in 2011, 2020, 2022 and 2023, highlighted by the devastating wildfire in Maui.
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