“On October 8, 1871, the most devastating forest fire in American history swept through (Estep)northeast Wisconsin, claiming 1,200 lives.” Forest fires affect various states in the U.S. every year. If a forest fire occurs, it’s usually in dry and hot places. Forest fires are very rapid, like tornados, but the Peshtigo fire was very deadly and severe…
On August 5, 1949, a wildfire overran 16 smokejumpers and firefighters in Mann Gulch on the Helena National Forest in Montana. The fire was most likely started by lightning from a thunderstorm. It was noticed promptly by rangers, who dispatched 16 smokejumpers, under the command of Wagner Dodge. Thought to be much smaller than it actually was, the fire quickly grew large and out of control, covering 3000 acres in 10 minutes during its blow up stage. Upon approaching Mann Gulch, the crew noticed the fire had already crossed onto their side of the gulch. Seeing the extreme danger in this, the order to retreat back up the slope was given and the men moved up the hill. Dodge later gave the order for the men to drop their pack…
In Little Fires everywhere, Celeste Ng deftly explores the topic of making difficult decisions as a mother, specifically at a young age. After giving birth to May Ling, Bebe Chow is abandoned by her partner. Bebe is an immigrant whose income was unable to support a child at the time. Bebe felt she had no other choice and ended up dropping May Ling off at a fire station. The McCullough couple attempted to adopt May Ling since they were unable to get pregnant.…
Paul’s development, Lake Windsor Downs, struggles with muck fires, robberies and bugs. After each problem starts to surface, the development owner Mr. Costello tries to come up with a solution. His attempts to solve these issues always end up causing more problems.…
The Eagle Creek Fire is a wildfire in the Columbia river gorge, across Oregon and Washington and has burned hundreds of thousands of acres and has risked people's lives and pets. Millions of your taxpayer dollars have been spent to try and stop this fire, along with many people risking their lives to stop it.…
In the novel, Forgotten Fire, written by Adam Bagdasarian, the main culture presented to the reader is the oppressive Turkish culture. The idea of this culture being dominant can be identified through the distinctly negative behavior towards Armenians.…
re Fire a dangerous source most people need it to cook, light a path, and warmth. This is how fire was brought to Earth the king of all gods had been enraged by his brother Hades for making his creations a demon “HADES WHY HAVE YOU DONE THIS TO MY FIRST CREATIONS!’ Zeus said. “I have no fear in you brother I am but a lonely soul looking for people to be with in the underworld” Hades Said. Zeus got very fiery he threw his lightning bolt trying to hit Hades but Hades dodged it and the lightning bolt hit a tree. A light but bright orange and red formed and ashes without know Zeus had burned a village. So enraged at Hades he threw another not in…
To the locals of Southern California early autumn marks the beginning of the Santa Ana winds. The Santa Ana winds are extremely dry and powerful winds, that are funneled through canyons from inland valleys to the coast of Southern California. The two essays “Brush Fire” by Linda Thomas and “The Santa Ana” by Joan Didion are different perspectives of the Santa Ana winds. Thomas views the Santa Ana winds as a necessity of nature, while Didion views them as a malevolent force of nature.…
An enthralling short story by Sherman Alexie, "This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona" is rich in symbolism. Much of its appeal lies in its enigmatic usage of symbols. Sherman's tale of death and renewal relies on three key symbols: the Phoenix (a type of mythical bird which is found in the title), the number seven, and in the name of the protagonist's story-telling friend, Thomas Builds-the-Fire.…
In 1911, a deadliest fire occurred in the triangle waist company killing hundreds of people. The workers at the Triangle Waist Company went on strike in 1909 to bring awareness to people about the company .The Women’s Trade Union League played a big role before and during the strike. The strike made an impact but it wasn’t enough to open the eyes of the owners of the triangle factory. Later a fire arose changing labor and industry forever.…
Edwidge Danticat, in “A Wall of Fire Rising”, writes a story of a family living in poverty in Haiti. The family has three members, the father Guy, his wife Lili, and their son, Little Guy. The story begins with Guy coming home with news to his family. Little Guy is excited to tell his father about the lines he has in the school play as the Boukman and recites them to his parents. After dinner, the family goes to the sugar mill in their town. At the sugar mill, there is a hot air balloon, which is fascinating to Guy. Guy believes that he can make the balloon fly. After playing and admiring the balloon, Guy and his family head back to their house. At that night, after approximately six months of unemployment, Guy tells his wife that he has to work the next day, scrubbing latrines at the sugar mill. In the sugar mill, there is a permanent hire list where Guy wants to add Little Guy, so that he can work when he grows up, but Lili does not agree. Lili and Guy, hear a loud scream coming from where their son sleeps. Little Guy forgot his lines. Lili tries to help him remember and when…
Once upon a time, in an age of laissez-faire, there erupted a horrible fire in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village. Usually fires aren’t as a big of a deal in comparison to other natural disasters such as earthquakes. But when the number of deaths pass 100 from a fire, something must be wrong in that picture. Statistically, fires have only had a few deaths as total and a number of people who are injured. But during this time, reality hit and the world discovered the hidden truth of manufacturers. So many things were taking place during this time, from workers being mistreated and overused to the low pay rate that many people had to deal with.…
I watched the PBS Frontline documentary "Death By Fire," directed and produced by Jessie Deeter and co-produced and written by Mike Wiser and Michael Kirk. Todd Willingham, the father of three little girls, was ultimately charged, tried, and convicted of murdering his daughters by means of arson. The date of the fire was December 23, 1991, and he was finally executed by lethal injection on Feb 17, 2004. The circumstances surrounding this case were and still are controversial to this day. Opponents on both sides continue to voice their opinions on whether or not the state of Texas executed a man for a crime that they could not prove was a crime. As a father of two daughters myself,…
Baldwin convinces blacks to ‘unmask’ themselves and develop their own individual consciousness rather than conforming to white society and the views that whites hold. Baldwin does this several ways in his essays in The Fire Next Time, most specifically being Letter from a Region in my Mind, by the promotion of black dignity and celebrating the minds of blacks. Especially in his essay, my dungeon shook, Baldwin emphasizes the idea that blacks become brought down when they begin to conform to white ideas and believe only in what the whites tell them. This ‘unmasking’ is one of the many driving forces Baldwin speaks about that is essential for social transformation in America. The promotion of blacks developing their own consciousness aside from…
Imagine you're one of the people that decide to ignore the officials warnings of an eruption on Mount St. Helens. It's May 18, 1980, 8:32 a.m. and you hear a rumble and feel the earth move. Behind you, you hear a thunderous noise. When you turn around, you see a humongous landslide headed your way. Mount St. Helens in Washington State has erupted, immediately a cloud of gas, rock, and hot ash shot up in the air and race down the mountainside at an unimaginable speed. The eruption created a mass of destruction, which effected many people locally and worldwide. The environment in the area was forever changed.…