Strong winds had been blowing for hours when foreman Ray Akers got an urgent call from his boss, superintendent Jack Harris of Hodge Western Corporation on the afternoon July 18. Harris had just heard from an employee at the Port of Morrow that a brush fire was spreading fast, threatening an entire neighborhood in Boardman, Oregon. The town needed help right away. Could Hodge Western bring water trucks to help prevent the fire from spreading?
Akers says Harris and company owner Alex Hodge didn’t hesitate for an instant. They directed that all company resources be made available.
Akers and the crew of union operating engineers he supervises had been heading home from the Tower Solar project being constructed on Port property. They’d stopped work early because the winds were creating too much dust. Akers, 52, is a 30-year member of Operating Engineers Local 701. He made some calls and he and his crew headed back to pick up five water trucks and a road grader.
The water trucks are used to keep down construction dust and help with soil compaction. They carry 4,000 gallons and are equipped with sprayers on the front, back, and sometimes on the side. When Akers reached the area of the fire, he saw nearby residents up on their roofs with garden hoses. Operators used their sprayers to wet the yards and roofs of homes near the fire that might be at risk.
The fire was fierce. In several hours it destroyed five homes, multiple automobiles, and a former church that was serving as Boardman’s food pantry. No humans perished, but five pets were lost, and several first responders were treated later for smoke inhalation.
The smoke smelled toxic from all the burning plastic in the homes, Akers said.
“The wind was ripping and that was a hot fire.”
Akers said at one point one of the water trucks got stuck in the sand of a burned-up field and Hodge Western workers pulled it free using the road grader they’d brought.
“I told the crew when they left, ‘Do not get in harm’s way. Assist. Assist.’ And they did just that. I’m proud of the whole group.”
Besides Akers, those jumping in to help the Boardman Fire District that day were Local 701 members Mike Pearson, Tim Hanset, and Kanei Alisna-Kolo. Alisna-Kolo was in his first day on the job as a union apprentice but he’d been trained on the truck that morning by Pearson. Akers wasn’t able to reach enough operating engineers to operate the trucks, so he also tapped a member of Laborers Local 737, fourth-term apprentice Israel Fernandez.
As the fire died out, Akers said residents came up to offer thanks, saying more houses might have been lost if it wasn’t for the water trucks.
He credits Hodge Western for acting quickly.
“It is a truly honor to work for a company that doesn’t just do business in a community, but stands ready to support it in times of need,” Akers wrote in a heartfelt post on Facebook. “In a world where insurance policies and liabilities often dictate decisions, I’m proud and deeply grateful that Hodge Western chose to act on principles and compassion.”
