Nearly 1,000 firefighters have fought the Evans Canyon Fire with an impressive array of machines on the ground and in the air — at least 127 engines, 13 bulldozers, two tank-like skidgines, 21 water tenders, six helicopters and two airplanes.
Joining them in the battle through the Yakima River Canyon is one of two specially equipped firefighting trains from BNSF Railway, both based in Washington.
Each train can take firefighters to hard-to-reach hot spots, carries 30,000 gallons of water and uses hoses to shoot water up to 30 feet away. Considering the value of BNSF trains and the loads they transport through arid, windy and often remote Western country, the trains are key to protecting railroad property, employees and the grassy rangeland they move through.
One of the trains was in the Yakima River Canyon and moving through the upper canyon late last week.