The pink fire retardant that are saving Los Angeles homes

Fighting deadly infernos from the air

A person watches from a balcony as a firefighting aircraft drops the fire retardant Phos-Chek near homes during the Palisades Fire as wildfires cause damage and loss through Los Angeles County on January 10, 2025 in Topanga, California.

Multiple wildfires fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds are burning across Los Angeles County. Reportedly at least 10 people have died with over 180,000 people having been under evacuation orders. Over 9,000 structures have been damaged or burned while more than more than 25,000 acres were burning from the fires. Nic Lynn, Neptune Aviation’s vice president of operations, said three of the company’s air tankers are in use in Southern California. The planes use designated, government-established air tanker bases, he explained. “We go to those pre-established tanker bases, where they mix the retardant and pump it into the airplanes. Kind of think of us like we’re a dump truck. We’ll carry the product from A to B,” he said.

January 16, 2025 | 5:45 am