Come with me as I learn how to use a drip torch first the first time, slung beneath a Bell 407 to create a backburn on an active fire while the winds were favourable.

Backburning is a fire suppression technique used in the control of wildfires. A backburn is a fire lit close to the edge of an active wildfire, which burns out the fuel between the wildfire and an established control line. The removal of fuel halts the fire’s spread, providing suitable conditions for firefighters to finish suppressing the fire.

Talking me through the process in another nearby helicopter is the supervisor of the active fire.