Antarctica doesn't get a lot of fires, but it's the windiest and driest continent in the world and thus fires are always a potential source of danger. Given the extreme weather conditions of the place, it's necessary that any potential fire sources be addressed immediately.
Haikai Magazine talked to Nicki Schauman, the senior firefighter at the America's Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, where 7 firefighters and 2 dispatchers respond to fire threats. Most of their work consists of responding to medical emergencies (they are also EMTs), but fire risks are especially acute when planes land and take off at Amundsen-Scott.
Schauman and his colleagues have specialized gear adapted to function in the extreme cold. When it's busy, they often spend half the day in vans near the runway, ready to respond the moment that an aircraft accident happens.
-via Nag on the Lake | Photo: Antarctic Fire Department
