Washington Cameraman Gets Soaked When Plane Douses Town in Flame Retardant

A news cameraman gets soaked in red fire retardant as he captures a DC-10 above.

ByABC News
August 17, 2015, 11:37 AM

— -- A cameraman in Washington State had a front-row seat to a plane dousing a town in fire retardant - but ended up soaked in the process.

Eric Jensen of ABC affiliate KOMO in Seattle, captured the plane on video flying over Chelan, Washington. Jensen was covering a wildfire that was advancing in the area at the start of the weekend.

A photo shows Jensen and his camera doused in the red retardant, known as slurry, which is a mix of water and fertilizer. The retardant is known to reduce the spread and intensity of fires to protect people, trees and and property, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

The wildfires in the the central Washington area, about 175 miles east of Seattle, left 9,000 homes without power over the weekend as utility poles were burned down. About 1,500 homes were under evacuation orders.

PHOTO: KOMO photographer Eric Jensen gets doused in fire retardant in Chelan, Wash., Aug. 14, 2015.
KOMO photographer Eric Jensen gets doused in fire retardant in Chelan, Wash., Aug. 14, 2015.