By Tracie Mitchell
Staff Writer 

Lights! Camera! Action!

WFD to be featured on Discovery Science show 'Strange Evidence'

 

February 13, 2018

Tracie Mitchell

Worland Fire Department firefighters Angie McClain, Caitlin Youngquist, Worland Fire Department Chief Chris Kocher, Worland Fire Department Captain Brandon Yule and Worland firefighter Bruce Nielson listen as Discovery Science freelance reporter Fraser Mullen explains the different re-creations they are planning to do Saturday afternoon at the Worland Fire Department fire hall.

WORLAND – Saturday, the Worland Fire Department welcomed a Discovery Science freelance reporter and cameraman from the United Kingdom to do a feature about the sulfur fire just north of Worland that occurred in July 2017.

Local firefighters who participated in the filming were Worland Fire Department Chief Chris Kocher, Captain Brandon Yule, Angie McClain, Caitlin Youngquist and Bruce Nielson.

Yule took a video of the fire, which occurred at around 10:38 p.m. on, July 7, 2017 while the fire crew was setting up for suppression of the fire. Posted to the fire departments Facebook page along with the video was this statement, "Upon arrival we found that the fire was a sulfur mound that had been ignited. Despite the beautiful flames, burning sulfur creates a hazardous gas called sulfur dioxide. Worland Fire Department was able to position apparatus in a safe location and lay in a line to extinguish the fire. We captured the video, while in full PPE [personal protective equipment] and wearing SCBA's [self-contained breathing apparatus] during a size up of the situation, as crews were setting up for suppression."

The video quickly went viral having been viewed 2.4 million times on Facebook and more than 40,000 times on YouTube only one week later. By Saturday the video had been viewed approximately 5.75 million times and shared 53,000 times. Somewhere along the way the video was sent to Discovery, who immediately wanted to learn more.

The sulfur fire was accidentally started when the exhaust pipe/ manifold of a motorcycle made contact with the sulfur while the motorcycle was crossing a mound and became bogged down. The sulfur mound is a remnant of the Texas Gulf Sulfur Company which operated in that area in the 1950s.

The footage shot Saturday will be featured by the show "Strange Evidence." Discovery Science freelance reporter Fraser Mullen stated that the show Strange Evidence investigates strange events and mysteries caught on film and uses science to debunk crazy theories about what is happening and to explain what is actually occurring.

According to the "Strange Evidence" website, "Strange Evidence" investigates mysteries caught on tape and looks for the scientific truth behind some of the most bizarre occurrences ever recorded. Investigators seek answers as they analyze footage, including levitating cars on a freeway, a statue that appears to move on its own, and a spontaneous burst of flames.

Mullen and his cameraman began by visiting the site where the fire originated Saturday afternoon and learned first-hand that Wyoming weather can be unforgivingly cold at times. After warming up, the team began to set up in the firehouse to interview the firemen who witnessed the event.

When Mullen saw that two of the firefighters were women he asked what would be the proper wordage for them. Worland volunteer firefighter McClain and Kocher stated that none of the four women in the department were bothered by being called firemen. Mullen further asked if it was usual to have women in the department, upon which Kocher stated that it was not unusual.

Once the formalities were out of the way Mullen and his cameraman set up in one of the fire trucks to do in-cab interviews with firefighters McClain and Caitlin Youngquist about the incident, their thoughts and feelings and concerns.

Yule was interviewed in the firehouse behind the fire trucks. While the cameraman was getting the "set" set-up for Yule's interview, Mullen had the firefighters who fought the sulfur fire re-create their arrival to the firehouse, filming with a tiny handheld camera on the end of a long stick.

The film crew also had the firefighters re-create putting on their gear, entering and exiting the fire truck and leaving the fire hall to the call.

Mullen stated that it takes about eight weeks to edit the footage down to about eight minutes. Once the footage is edited it will be sent to Discovery for more editing. He expected that the final results would be aired sometime in July or August.

 
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