47K-pound vehicle to help prevent wildfires in Panhandle

BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - The Chipola Forestry Center received a mulching machine about two weeks ago. The 47,000-pound machine was funded by the state and should help prevent wildfires in the region.

“The Raptor 500 is designed specifically to target the Hurricane Michael impacted areas where we can come in and mow and mulch-up the dead and downed trees where we can create a defensible space anywhere from a 50 to a 100-foot buffer,” said Chipola Forestry Center Mitigation Specialist Aleese Maples.

That buffer could help firefighters prevent a wildfire from spreading to structures. However, that’s only part of it.

“There’s a lot of large amounts of fuels on the ground, so this piece of equipment is designed to help get rid of a lot of these fuels that are still on the ground,” Maples said.

Fuels can vary from vegetation to dead and downed trees. Florida Forest Service officials also said the machine comes in handy after dealing with last year’s wildfires.

“It’s the biggest since anybody can remember,” said Chipola Forestry Center Manager Mike Mathis. “It was pretty substantial.”

FFS officials reported there were around 230 wildfires that covered more than 36,000 acres of land in the seven-county area stretching from Walton to Gulf Counties in 2022.

Wildfires aren’t solely weather-related.

“While wildfires are weather-dependent, a lot of them are human-caused,” Mathis said. “That combination does offer a threat.”

That’s why educating the public on fire mitigation is so important.

“We’re trying to prevent wildfires by education and prescribed burning activities,” Mathis said.

Wildfire season begins next month. You can visit this wildfire preparation website or you can call the Chipola Forestry Center directly at 850-373-1801 for more information.

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