That's so INSANELY awesome! I heard about that diver who accidently got scooped up by a bucket and his body was found 35 miles from where he was diving in a bunch of trees in full scuba gear. Ever since then I thought it would be the coolest thing ever to take a ride in a copter bucket...as long as it was possible to hang on when they dropped...

'Veteran Fire Divers simply inflate their BCD's on the way down to fall slower than the water and then land in the water from the scoop, proper weighting is VERY important in Fire Diving.'

-that doesn't sound very safe at all... you plan on landing in a pool of water that was dropped from a plane to put out a fire? i'll just use a parachute, thank you.

Soon they'll be breeding us like cattle! You've got to warn everyone and tell them! Soylent green is made of people! You've got to tell them! Soylent green is people!

JB... that's an urban legend... that story has been around for years now. no truth to it.

'I will become the most powerful Jedi ever!'

'I'm the damn designer, bitches!'

Somebody has too much time on their hands...

Gotta be a gag - check out these 'reports' from the site's accidents page

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Fire Diving Accidents
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Fire Diver Found in Southern California

Santa Barbara (AP) A puzzling discovery was found in the mountains of southern California. Fire authorities found a corpse in a burnt out section of forest while assessing the damage done by a forest fire. The deceased male was found in the top of a tree, dressed in a full wetsuit, complete with tank, fins, mask and snorkel.
It was found that on the day of the fire, the deceased diver went on a diving trip some 35 miles away from the fire. The fire was fought with a fleet of helicopters with very large buckets. The helicopters would dip their buckets into the ocean, carry the water to the forest fire, and drop the water on the fire. The diver was accidentally scooped up in a bucket while he was diving and carried off, only to be dropped onto a forest fire. Authorities are not sure how much effect the diver had on putting out the fire.
As some of you are aware, there was a tragic accident last year when we lost a member of the French Fire Eaters.
This is his story:
Response to a wildfire on the south of France's Cote d'Azur was billed as a marvel of modern fire-fighting technology. Two specially-built flying boats zoomed in, skimmed the waters of the Mediterranean, scooping vast amounts of water into their belly tanks, and then dropped the water on the hillside fire. All was jolly and the wine flowed freely until a body was found in the ashes. The coroner found that the gentleman had apparently fallen from a great height, suffering serious injuries before being burned to death. The report further noted that the victim was wearing a bathing suit, snorkel, and swim fins.
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Fire Diving loses one of its own

One of the area's most respected Fire Divers (From Northern Mountain Fire Diver's Association) was killed today in a tragic incident.Friends and relatives watched with shock and horror as Joe Spamanski fell to his death seconds after having been scooped up in a 'Bambi' bucket. After having performed a perfect entry, he was lifted several hundred feet into the air after which the helicopter lost some power causing the pilot to jettison the bucket onto sloping and solid terrain.
The helicopter autorotated and landed safely. The pilot was stunned to hear about the fatality and expressed his condolences to the beriefed family. Joe was practising for the upcoming California event and this incident stands to remind us of the unexpected hazards of our sport..

Nico
(DeepHeat Fire Divers)
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Tragic Accident in Seattle

Seattle (UNI) -- Coast Guard officials today announced the discovery of a mysterious corpse found in the ocean off the coast of Washington. A group of recreational scuba divers reported seeing a body floating underwater, clad in a jumpsuit and trailing a parachute.

The body was recovered by rescue workers, and an analysis of the victim's clothing and personal effects revealed that he was a professional woodland firefighter, of the type popularly known as 'smoke-jumpers'. Members of his profession routinely parachute into areas threatened by forest fires to aid in their control and eventual eradication. No explanation was given for his unexpected appearance some two miles into open water instead of on dry land.

Apparently the victim was attempting to parachute into an ongoing forest fire, and through an unknown chain of events ended up inadvertently landing in the ocean instead. Members of a local group of scuba divers called the 'Puissant Puget Fantastic Fire Divers And Totally Awesome Bambi Bucket Riders Association' said that they were completely surprised by the sudden appearance of the victim in their regular diving grounds, but that they would award him extra points for ingenuity and perseverance even though their association president, Bob 'Been There Dove That' Ling, told gathered television reporters that 'we hope this doesn't give fire diving as an art and a science a bad name'. Representatives of the professional firefighting community refused to comment.

Officials admit their inability to manufacture a plausible explanation for this event and invite the scuba diving community to come forward with additional information.

Reminds me of the bonsai kitten urban legend. Had quite a few people going there.

http://bonsaikitten.chaos.org/bkintro.html

that bonsai kitty thing is not true?

:'remember. freehand, not illustrator'. someone wise:

That makes me sad...I want to be a fire diver...