Montana is burning this summer, according to an impassioned plea in Congress from Montana’s Senator Jon Tester. Based on the smoke that fills the valley where I live, I would agree. The heat and danger (we’ve already lost two firefighters) make it an unlikely place for romance.
For close to a century, the policy was to suppress fires, leading to an over-abundance of fuel all across the West. Drought situations have added to the dead and dying trees and other vegetation which are simply not getting enough water. Beetle-killed pines have also increased across huge swaths of the West due to the fire suppression.
It’s a deadly combination that has produced one of the worst summers of fire that Montana has seen in recent years. (For up-to-date information on Montana’s fires, click here.)
And, still the brave men and women of the fire service continue to fight the massive fires that threaten people’s homes and ranches. Missoula is home to a smokejumper school. It was there that Nora Roberts placed her unlikely romance, Chasing Fire. The book is, like most of Roberts’ books, a good read, and especially important in times when brave people are on the lines fighting for our safety.
We keep them in our prayers.
Leave a Comment