Fighting a wildfire in Yosemite is not simply a matter of sending in more equipment. The Dome Fire is burning across rugged terrain where firefighters must work around steep slopes, wilderness restrictions and limited access. Crews are combining helicopters, infrared technology, pack animals, hand-built firelines and even Yosemite’s granite landscape to slow the fire while protecting people, structures and the park itself.
Pack Mules Carry Supplies Through Rugged Terrain
One of the most unexpected members of the Dome Fire operation has four legs. Pack mules are carrying meals, water, fuel, generators, lanterns, drip torches and other firefighting equipment into remote areas where moving supplies by conventional vehicles is difficult or impossible. Their work also frees helicopters for more urgent missions, including water drops, making the overall air operation more efficient.
Helicopters Drop Water Where Crews Need It Most
Helicopters are giving firefighters a way to attack the fire from above while crews work along its edges. The aircraft have been making water drops to help keep flames from crossing containment lines, while also transporting firefighters and equipment to active areas. On Oct. 5, helicopters were also used to support efforts around a slopover that had crossed the Ostrander Lake Trail.
Granite Becomes a Natural Firebreak
Instead of trying to build a conventional containment line everywhere, firefighters are taking advantage of Yosemite’s own landscape. Large areas of exposed granite can serve as natural barriers where direct line construction is not practical. This approach is especially useful in steep, rugged terrain, where crews can use existing rock formations and other areas with little burnable vegetation to help limit the fire’s movement.
Structure Wrap Helps Protect the Ostrander Ski Hut
Firefighters are not simply trying to stop the fire’s advance. They are also protecting vulnerable structures in its path. At the Ostrander ski hut, crews have installed structure wrap as part of their protection efforts. This specialized material can shield vulnerable parts of a structure from radiant heat and embers, giving firefighters another layer of defense while they work to keep the fire from reaching the building.
Infrared Drones Hunt for Hidden Hot Spots
Some of the fire’s most important activity can be difficult to see with the naked eye, particularly after flames have moved through an area. Earlier in the incident, firefighters used two unmanned aircraft systems equipped with infrared sensors, with one operating during the day and another at night, to locate hot spots. Infrared technology allows crews to detect heat signatures and identify areas that may need attention even when visible flames are absent.
Firefighters Are Using Minimal-Impact Tactics in Wilderness
Yosemite’s wilderness setting limits the heavy machinery firefighters can use. Large ground-disturbing equipment such as dozers is generally prohibited in wilderness areas, so crews rely on Minimal Impact Suppression Tactics, or MIST. That can include carefully constructed handlines, natural barriers and other approaches designed to control the fire while causing as little additional disturbance to the protected landscape as possible.
Crews Are Building Lines by Hand and Working From Both Directions
Sometimes the most effective tool is still a firefighter with a hand tool. Crews have been constructing and reinforcing containment lines along the fire’s perimeter, with workers approaching the eastern edge from both the north and south. Earlier operations also included handlines connected to existing trails and previous fire footprints. This strategy lets firefighters establish defensible boundaries while adapting their work to the rugged terrain and changing fire behavior.
