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Plane Scoops Ocean Water to Fight Los Angeles Fires (Video)

Originally posted on SURFER | By Dashel Pierson | Last updated Jan 9, 2025 12:47 PM ET

Wildfires in Los Angeles County are wreaking havoc on local communities, engulfing Pacific Palisades then jumping PCH and spreading to the ocean, destroying untold scores of buildings and homes, and seeing countless residents literally leaving everything behind and running for their lives.

The scenes are apocalyptic, to say the least.

As imagined, it’s all-hands-on-deck for Los Angeles County fire officials, police, and other agencies which have come in to support. And in the Pacific Palisades, specifically, where the fire has pretty much leveled the town, there were reports of fire hydrants running dry amidst the firefighting efforts. Thus, fire crews were forced to turn elsewhere for water to fight the blaze: the ocean.

Video footage showed an air tanker scooping up water from the Pacific Ocean, near Will Rogers State Beach, and returning to the hills to dump the deluge on the inferno. Despite the abundance of water in coastal regions such as this, it’s not typical for firefighting crews to use seawater as a deterrence.

But why?

According to Technology.org:

“Nearly identically, salt water can effectively cool down the fire and cut off the oxygen supply.

“The salt water, however, is not usually used for the extinguishing of fires, and there are some reasons behind this. The first problem is corrosion. Many parts of the water tanks and other equipment of firefighters are made from metals that corrode due to salt water.

“Moreover, saltwater harms plant life. Salt can make an ecosystem completely barren for many years. That’s because the salt makes water less available to plants due to osmosis.”

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

As these fires continue to scorch the region, our hearts go out to all those affected.

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

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