Settling Back In

I have now completed Week 3 on The Ice. I have picked up where I left off at work - 5.5 calls and 2.5 spills - the most out of all the dispatchers! The .5's are calls that I've had to share with the new dispatcher. We took those while I was training her. Work has been fun! It's kind of nice dispatching again after an eight month break. The other day I had 2 calls and was also working as ATC Ground for the 2 airfields. We had a Basler (DC-3) and a couple of Twin Otters taking off from and landing back at the Skiway at Williams Field and the FAA Challenger and C-17 flying in and out of Pegasus Field. I had to give approval of and denial for vehicles entering the runways/skiways. It was challenging as I did not/do not have a visual on either airfield. Both are about 15 miles from where I am and I'm in an office without windows! Challenging, and have my heart in my throat scary! Thankfully everyone was safe and we went without incident. I think tomorrow the tower opens for Williams Field so those planes and vehicles there will talk with air traffic control in the tower (who can see what's happing there) for movement requests on the skiway. I will only have to manage the other field where the C-17's fly into. It's always something different here on The Ice!

2015-2016 Summer Crew Antarctic Fire Department

Basler (DC-3) at Williams Field Skiway. The peak in the the background is Mt. Discovery.

View from under the wing of a Twin Otter.

I've Made It!

Finally, after an extra 3 day vacation in Christchurch, New Zealand, I've made it to McMurdo Station, Antarctica! The weather here has not been good at all. I was supposed to arrive on the Ice on October 9th but because of bad weather at McMurdo I did not arrive until October 11th late in the evening. By the time I got done with yet another orientation and got my room key and bed  linens, it was 10 pm. I got to bed at 11 and had to be at work the next morning at 7 am. Needless to say I am still a little jet lagged!

I'm on dayshift and it looks like I may be on the dayshift for the whole season. I think that's a good thing but I guess that remains to be seen! I've worked 2 shifts so far and have wreaked havoc on the fire crews. I've toned out 3 calls and have had 2 hazardous spills - one of which was one of our fire vehicles that had an active leak of foam and had leaked 10 gallons with a potential of leaking 700 gallons! Thankfully, everything turned out OK.

I met my roommate last night and she is very nice. She is a dispatcher at MacOps and is currently on the night shift. So it works out very well because when I am at work as she is sleeping and visa versa...except when I am off. I am staying out of the room and not running in and out of it so she can sleep. I have to go find somewhere to go so I hang out in a lounge as the coffee house isn't open quite yet. What is MacOps? That is the dispatch center that tracks all of the science groups.

Here are some photos of Christchurch, my room and what things look like around here at the moment.

On one of the delay days we took a bus to the mountains where there was a gondola. We didn't take the gondola up, we hiked up a trail! I made it half way and that was good enough for me!

The cathedral in Christchurch. It was damaged in the earthquake. One evening they had a food truck festival here! I had Chicken Tikka and it was fantastic! 

My room and my sleeping area. My friend Cindy gave me the blanket, sheets and bedspread. It feels more homey but my walls are still a little bare. I'm working on that.

The view out over the ice. Thankfully, today it is sunny and not as windy. Temp is -18!

Friday FunDay/Friday (Ice) Flight Day! More Like Friday (24 Hour) Flight Delay Day!

Today was the scheduled day to fly down to the Ice. As luck would have it, the flight was delayed 24 hours due to bad weather at McMurdo Station. And as luck would have it, I was notified just after I got out of the shower! What time was that you may be asking yourself? It was 4:40 am. So as I debate about going back to sleep or staying up to get breakfast, here are some photos of my afternoon in Christchurch.

The city is still recovering from 2 devastating earthquakes. The first one happened in September 2010. It was a 7.1 magnitude on the Richter Scale. It lasted 40 seconds and was felt through most of the South Island of New Zealand. the second was actually an aftershock and it occurred on February 22, 2011 at 12:51 PM. It was a 6.3 and lasted only 10 seconds but it created the most devastation damage. Buildings were already leaked from the 7.1 quake a few months before and this one caused liquefaction, which Wikipedia defines as:
" A phenomenon whereby a saturated or partially saturated soil substantially loses strength and stiffness in response to an applied stress, usually earthquake shaking or other sudden change in stress condition, causing it to behave like a liquid."

The quake killed 185 people.

There is a lot of construction going on in the city center. This is where most of the damage, and loss of life, occurred. It is the area I am staying in. The people are extremely resilient and very friendly. The Kiwis are pretty special people!

There are many murals on the sides of damaged buildings to help the city look better . This is a mural of penguins and the artist made a statement about Global Warming - the penguins as well as the ice appear to be melting.

More artwork

There are many food trucks in downtown Christchurch as most of the buildings that housed restaurants were destroyed.

This is a sculpture in the "Re-Start" mall. The mall is made of shipping containers. New Zealand is a series of 2 islands and all supplies, including building supplies are shipped in these containers. 

The church that the City was named after is still in disrepair. They have build a new, smaller church about 4 blocks away. This church is a Catholic church.

Getting ready for Season 3

It is 100 degrees here in AZ still but where I'm going it is minus 3 with a minus 20 degree windchill. Yep, very soon I'll be heading back to Antarctica and McMurdo Station for my third season. 

My bags are mostly packed. Even though the airlines allow two 50 lbs. bags, I am limited to a total of 85 lbs. for my Ice Flight. I had my bags mostly packed and I was below the 85 lbs. limit when the Fire Chief called to tell me he was FedExing my uniforms to my house. Usually I receive my uniforms when I arrive on the Ice but not this year I guess.  So I've had to rethink what I need to take with me. The good thing is is that if I'm over the weight limit, there is a US postal facility at the CDC (Clothing Distribution Center) in Christchurch, NZ. I can ship my remaining items! 

My job on the Ice will be the same job I've done in the past - Fire Dispatcher. So I will be working 12 hour shifts answering 911 and other phone calls and dispatching the Fire Department on Fire and EMS calls. 

The adventure is about to begin. My fingers are crossed that all goes well!