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Local firefighter returns from battling west coast fires

Posted at 6:50 PM, Aug 14, 2018
and last updated 2018-08-14 21:53:25-04

Back in the low-fire danger, Chris Jacobson with the Okeechobee District of Florida Forest Service, looks over his photos.

Documentation of the Ferguson Fire, a 96 thousand acre fire.

Chris got back this past weekend after 14 straight days of 16-hour shifts.

"Working hard. Working extremely hard," said Chris. "Everywhere you go it's hazardous. It's hard work. It's hot. There's environmental problems. Nothing fun about that stuff, but we make it fun."

Not all of it is fun with homes threatened and lives lost.

"Dedicated to the two brothers, we lost out there," said Chris looking over a picture of a memorial of two firefighters that died.

"We're all brothers. Always on the back of our minds," said Chris.

He says he's ready to go back if need be.

"Challenging, but we love doing it. It's what we live for."