Outside the Interior Alaska community of Delta Junction, firefighters have been working to contain wildfires for weeks. And as if that job wasn't hard enough, some crews are having trouble with bears.
Ben Gage, a spokesperson for the crews working around Delta Junction, says he's gotten reports of bears wandering through camps and even into one unlucky firefighter's tent. So far, nobody has gotten hurt.
"It's sometimes hard to completely get the smell off you when you're working outside," Gage said. "Even the smell of bar oil or fire on you, the smell of your clothes from working in the day."
That's right. Bears like bar oil — the stuff firefighters use to lubricate their chainsaws.
Sometimes, big, furry problems call for big, furry solutions.
Enter Mardy and Sky, a mother-daughter team of Karelian bear dogs. Late last month, the two big, fluffy, black-and-white dogs joined about 50 firefighters at a camp near the roughly 23,000 acre Twelvemile Fire, southeast of Delta Junction.
Their handler, Nils Pedersen, says the dogs' passing resemblance to real bears isn't what gives the breed its name.
"These are big game hunting dogs from Finland that were traditionally used to hunt brown bear and moose," he said.
Pedersen directs the Wind River Bear Institute, a nonprofit that offers non-lethal solutions to complicated human-wildlife conflicts. The organization advises on strategies like hiding bear attractants and using electric fences and bear spray.
Pedersen has been bringing bear dogs out to fire camps for the last five years. A video from July 11 shows Mardy and Sky at work. Pedersen leads them around the camp until the dogs see something behind a line of trees and start to bark at it.
"We can find bears, the dogs will then bark at them," Pedersen said. "They behave very aggressively towards bears, and communicate to the bear that we know it's there and that it can leave, and it has to leave, and this is the way out."
Gage, the spokesperson, says they also have harsher bear control methods at their disposal.
"One of them is using chainsaws and loud noises to scare away bears," Gage said. "And as a last resort, getting qualified shooters out on incidents."
But Pedersen, the handler, says having barky bear dogs on guard reduces the likelihood of having to use that last resort. And he says the dogs provide some peace of mind for folks who are trying to get a good night's rest.
"Even though the barking in the middle of the night may not be everyone's favorite thing, it's preferable than hearing a bear trashing your camp," Pedersen said.
And he said the dogs are as friendly to people as they are ferocious to bears, which can be a morale boost for tired firefighters.
"These people are away from their family, away from their friends, usually working long hours," said Pedersen. "To visit with the dogs and pet a dog, and especially a dog that's helping keep you safe out here, is really pleasant."
Pedersen says Mardy and Sky are equally grateful for all the bellyrubs and treats they get from firefighters.
Firefighters are still mopping up some of the state's highest priority wildfires on the outskirts of Fairbanks. They're also reporting steady progress on fires near Healy, where dozens of homes and structures have burned this summer. They say more rain in the first half of the week could bring some relief, but that could be cancelled out by hotter, windier weather in the second half.
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