ESCANABA, MI – A 97-foot-tall Smokey Bear hot air balloon will fly high above the U.P. State Fair later this month.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources announced Wednesday that the New Mexico-based hot air balloon made in Smokey Bear’s image will ascend on a tether several times during the festival, which will take place at the fairgrounds in Escanaba Aug. 19-21.
The massive balloon holds 145,000 cubic feet of hot air, measures 72 feet across at Smokey’s hat brim, is made of 4,670 square yards of nylon and takes 12 to 15 people for setup and inflating.
“Smokey Bear is an icon in his 77th year of telling people how to prevent forest fires,” said Paul Rogers, DNR fire prevention specialist. “This balloon is a pretty impressive sight. It’s going to be impossible not to notice Smokey Bear as the balloon rises near the DNR Pocket Park. It should be a lot of fun and bring attention to our fire prevention safety message.”
Ascensions are planned Thursday morning, Friday evening and Saturday afternoon, weather permitting.
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Additionally, the DNR Pocket Park will offer U.P. State Fair visitors the chance to try fishing, shooting, archery and fire-prevention games. There will be a Smokey Bear selfie station, an “Ask the DNR” booth and a booth staffed by DNR conservation officers.
There’s a fire tower on-site, too. All activities within the pocket park are free. The balloon crew will also bring some Smokey Bear merchandise.
Smoky Bear has been synonymous with fire safety since Aug. 9, 1944, when the U.S. Forest Service and the Ad Council agreed on a bear as a symbol for fire-prevention efforts, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
The first poster of Smokey Bear depicted a bear pouring a bucket of water on a campfire. In 1947, the familiar slogan “Only YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires!” came into use.
In Michigan his message is particularly important since the state has more than 20 million forested acres. So far this year, DNR wildland firefighters have responded to more than 260 fires in Michigan that burned about 2,300 acres.
DNR firefighters also have been called to assist with blazes in California, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon and Wyoming, as well as the Canadian province of Manitoba.
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