Dozer and Helicopter Working Near a Hand Crew
You are FFT1 with an 8-person crew holding a dozer line on a 150-acre fire. A D6 dozer is cutting line above you on a 40% slope, and a Type 2 helicopter is making bucket drops on the ridge. The dozer operator is 150 feet uphill and out of sight of the crew; the helicopter is dropping 100 feet from your holding position. Radio traffic is on a shared tactical channel, and the helicopter has no assigned spotter on the ground. The dozer's exhaust is blowing toward your crew, and you see the blade pushing burning material downhill. Wind is 12 mph gusting 20, relative humidity 25%. You have two sawyers and an engine crew working 200 feet below. You have not briefed hand signals.
1. Identify the hazards and describe safe approach and spotter duties for the dozer and helicopter.
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Primary hazards: the dozer is above the crew on a 40% slope and out of sight, and it is pushing burning material downhill toward the crew; exhaust is blowing into the crew; the helicopter is dropping 100 feet away with no ground spotter, so rotor wash and bucket release are uncontrolled. Safe approach to the dozer: never approach from downhill or from behind the blade; establish radio contact, have the operator shut down or idle, and approach from the uphill side only when the operator sees you. Spotter duties for the helicopter: establish radio contact, identify the drop zone and personnel, confirm no one is under the load, and maintain a clear safe zone. Do not let the crew work under the flight path. If you cannot establish positive control, suspend the operation.
2. What hand signals and communications would you establish before allowing the equipment to continue?
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Before the dozer moves, agree on hand signals and radio call signs. Standard signals include start and stop, come to me, move up or back, slow down, and emergency stop. Use a clear, visible spotter positioned where the operator can see both the spotter and the crew. For the helicopter, use radio rather than hand signals if possible; if hand signals are needed, use the standard marshalling signals and keep them deliberate. The key is a pre-brief: who signals, who acknowledges, and what the emergency stop is. If the dozer operator cannot see the spotter, the dozer stops. If the helicopter cannot identify the spotter, the drop is cancelled. Never assume the operator sees you.
3. Would you continue or suspend operations? Explain the decision and what you would document.
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Suspend the dozer immediately until the burning material is controlled and the operator has a spotter with positive communication. Move the crew out of the downhill path and away from the exhaust. Suspend helicopter drops until a ground spotter is assigned and the drop zone is cleared. If the fire behavior is still manageable and the dozer can be repositioned to push away from the crew, resume with a briefing; otherwise keep the dozer on the road and use handline. Document the suspension, the hazard, and the restart briefing. The test is not whether the dozer is available; it is whether you have positive control of the equipment and the fire.