June 2020 • Nebraskaland 47
call upon its relationship with South Dakota Wildland Fire.
That organization usually has an additional SEAT at nearby
Hot Springs to serve the Black Hills.
"Then, we may have two SEATs reloading at the Chadron
SEAT Base, providing quick and continual aerial suppression
to any Pine Ridge fi re," he said. "In return, we have allowed
South Dakota to utilize our SEAT many times."
Burning Questions, Uncertain Future
No one knows for certain what the future brings to the
Pine Ridge wildfire scene, but officials are making strides in
preventing past horrors. Healing from catastrophic wildfires
takes time, for both human emotions and the landscape.
Regardless, unrivaled beauty remains in the region, both
in places that have not been scorched and those that have.
While the landscape has been altered, a new kind of splendor
is in these burned areas. The fires uncovered many landforms
previously obscured under the blanket of trees, and in many
places improved the ecology.
The Pine Ridge surely will always be an attraction. Thanks
to the coordinated efforts of many, there is a much better
chance a sustainable pine forest will be there forever, too.
N
Even though the prospects of pine survival in Chadron State Park were uncertain after the 2012 wildfi res burned through
the property, many trees survived and it has retained remarkable splendor. Many credit the years of thinning operations.
Although planting is regarded as a costly way to reforest
pines, it will forever be a good way for Boy Scouts and other
youth to invest in the future.
