R is for Ranger
Blade Ranger had been on patrol when a call went over the park's emergency channel, and the Chief's day went into overdrive. There were reports of an altercation at the Hanging Rock Campground, and the lodge had not been able to get a hold of the young seasonal ranger assigned to manage the facility. While exact details of the incident were not known, public safety personal were requested to the site ASAP.
Upon receiving the call, the helicopter immediately diverted to help knowing full well that he was going to arrive faster than any of the park's ground public safety rangers. He kept an open channel with Patch, the dispatcher who was trying to make sense of the reports that were coming in from visitors, …and the news wasn't good. The seasonal ranger had been attacked, and the attacker was apparently blocking the campground's primary exit making it impossible for visitors to flee to safety.
Even though Blade knew that his options to stop a violent visitor were limited, he also knew that for the safety of the Park he needed to either deescalate the situation…or if that failed, he needed to buy enough time for actual law enforcement officers to arrive and deal with it. In short, Blade this was one of the few situations when the helicopter was going to have to pull on his acting experience instead of his firefighting training. He breathed deep and tried to channel his inner 'Blazing' Blade Ranger.
The Chief focused on the ground as he came in for a landing and from the air he was easily able to spot where the disturbance. There was a small sedan in the park service grey and green with its back bumper firmly pressed against a stone fence. The ranger was practically pinned by a dark blue truck that was practically pressed against the smaller car's grill. Noting that attack seemed to be actively in progress, Blade scanned the landscape, trying to figure out the best way to insert himself into the situation. After doing a bit of math in his head, he determined the path that would most likely cause the truck to back off and allow the helicopter to place himself between the two vehicles.
"Patch, I am on final approach."
"Noted. Jump Fife-Won is inbound, eta less than three minutes. Helitanker Tree, Tree is crossing canopy dome, eta to your location is approximately six minutes. The Lodge reports four ground vehicles inbound to your location, eta approximately fifteen minutes." Patch reported in her clipped dispatcher voice that she only utilized when things really hit the fan.
"Understood, landing now." Blade gave his final report to the dispatcher and then shut down his radio connection, knowing he wouldn't get back on the horn until the situation was dealt with…or he managed to get himself in a situation where he needed to communicate with one of the inbound responders.
Squaring his rotors, Blade made a textbook approach over the clearing and straight towards the truck. As he neared the ground, he locked eyes with the truck. Playing chicken, he left the vehicle with two options…back up or get landed on. When faced with a vehicle bearing down on him at speed the truck instinctually backed up enough to allow Blade to land at an angle between truck and the ranger, and the force of his downwash allowed the helicopter to give the ranger enough space to peel their bumper off of the stone wall they had been pinned to.
With the two vehicles now safely separated, the helicopter got his first good look at the truck. There was clearly something wrong with the aggressive vehicle. While Blade didn't know exactly what, the way that the truck sat on his tires and the uneven look in his eyes made the helicopter suspect that drugs, alcohol, mental illness, or some combination of the three were probably playing a role in the current mess. As Blade used his own body to shield the terrified seasonal ranger from the truck who was harassing her, his suspicions were confirmed when he smelled the stench of ethanol and high grade on the vehicle's exhaust. Knowing that he was never going to be able to have a logical conversation with the truck in his altered state, Blade turned his focus to getting the young ranger to safety.
"Are you alright?" The Chief asked…and he received a soft, sobbing whimper in response. So, clearly, the ranger was not okay. Now the question was how bad things where. "Can you drive?"
"Yes…" She managed to stammer in a whisper.
"Do you know where the Air Attack Base is?"
To this, the car bobbed her acknowledgment, but didn't utter a word. Blade heard the thunder of a familiar set of engines. Relaxing slightly, he spared a glance upward and saw a familiar twin-tailed aircraft performing a figure eight above his location.
"Okay, I want you to drive to the Air Attack Base. A tug named Patch will be waiting for you when you get there, and do you see that in the sky?"
She bobbed another affirmative.
"That plane's name is Cabbie. He is going to keep an eye on you while you are driving to the base and will let me know immediately if you run into additional trouble. Do you understand?"
The little car bobbed again, clearly on the verge of tears.
"Go then."
"But…" She stammered out, then when Blade gave her a concerned look, she managed to whisper. "The campground…the guests…I could get fired…"
The Chief's expression softened. This young gal had probably started her career under the previous superintendent and hadn't realized just how much things had changed under Ol' Jammer's lead. "You will not be fired. I will speak directly with Superintendent Jammer and make sure that it doesn't happen, and I will make sure that the campground is taken care of until a new Ranger can be sent up."
"Thank you." The little car whispered, before driving at least 15 miles above the speed limit out of the campground.
"Cabbie, do you have eyes on her?"
"Affirmative, it looks like she will have a clean shot up to the base, and Patch is already on the tarmac waiting for her."
"Roger. Let me know if you need any additional resources." Now that that was taken care of, Blade could turn his attention to the drunken piece of scum in front of him…a drunken piece of scum that didn't even have the self-preservation instinct to realize that he was completely outclassed at the moment and was currently trying to force his way around Blade to chase after the traumatized ranger. The Chief engine growled as he used his best law enforcement officer voice. "Sir, stand down."
"Or what you will stop me?" The truck in front of him clearly didn't take Blade's authority seriously.
"Yes."
"You would dare." The vehicle gave a harsh laugh and reeved his engine. Blade didn't budge as he stared the vehicle down. The helicopter let a predatory smile cross his lips.
"I may not be able to restrain you, but I am certain that he can." Blade didn't flinch as Windlifter's powerful downdraft filled the clearing. Based on the power of the wind, the Skycrane was using his strong rotors to maximum effect, only throttling back his speed moments before his tires touching the ground. The Chief raised an eyebrow at the hooligan. "Would you like to try?"
Term- Ranger- A ranger is a uniformed employee that is in a position that is responsible for protecting the park and its visitor. Park rangers are divided into four major categories: 1) Interpretative- rangers who are responsible for directly interacting and educating visitors. These are the rangers who give tours, manage the visitor centers, and do outreach with schools. 2) Maintenance – rangers who are responsible for maintaining the park's infrastructure. These are the rangers that maintain trails, plow snow, clean facilities, and make sure that the park's equipment is in working order. 3) Public Safety – rangers who are responsible for firefighting, EMS, or police actions within the park. If the ranger is carrying a gun, a stretcher, or an ax, they probably belong to this category. A Public Safety Ranger position is considered to be one of the most dangerous civil service jobs in the US. 4) Resource Management – rangers that are trained to manage specific parts of the park. These rangers often have at least a master's degree if not a Ph.D. and include scientists (biologists, geologists, ecologists, etc.), artisans/historians, and HR specialists (lawyers, accountants, archivists, etc.) While there is a wide variety of ranger careers, it is important to note that not all personal working in the National Park are Rangers.