DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Tx. -- DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Dyess personnel from the Dyess Environmental Section, the Dyess Fire Department and the Air Force Wildland Fire Branch safely completed a prescribed burn of approximately 988 acres on the installation Feb. 18-20, 2022.
“The primary goal of the prescribed burns is to reduce fuel loads of dead vegetation to reduce wildfire risks that could pose a threat to the installation’s mission. The secondary goal is to benefit the natural resources of the installation by promoting native grass restoration and removal of invasive mesquite trees,” said Nathan Suida, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland Wildland Support Module Lead, Bureau of Land Management.
Thanks to the Airman of the 7th Civil Engineering Squadron and their partners from the WFB, this base sustainment effort improved mission readiness while garnering a safer work and living environment for Team Dyess and the Abilene community.
Dyess has 5,348 contiguous acres. The installation mission is to provide accurate, timely, and proactive command and control integration in direct support of B-1 Lancer and C-130 Hercules training operations and deployed combat operations. Conducting these burns promoted mission sustainability by mitigating wildfire risks.
“One of the reasons we are doing these prescribed burns is for resource preservation as well as fire protection,” said Chief Master Sergeant Charles Clawson, Dyess Air Force Base Fire Chief. “Burning the underbrush creates a healthier environment and prevents larger, more hazardous fires in the summertime. In addition, this gives Dyess firefighters the opportunity to integrate with the Bureau of Land Management and National Forest Service Wildland firefighters and gain valuable experiences with these partners.”
Environmental stewardship by base personnel delivers proactive protection to the people and missions of America’s Lift and Strike base.