Nainital Forest Fires: What exactly is a Bambi bucket?

On April 27, the MI 17 V5 helicopter of the Indian Air Force was deployed in order to extinguish the Nainital forest fires in Uttarakhand, as per Pushkar Singh Dhami, the Chief Minister of the state.

Now, what is gaining immense limelight is the fact that the helicopter made use of a "Bambi Bucket". It is often commonly known as the heli-bucket or the helicopter bucket. It is mainly used to collect water from the Bhimtal lake, a lake situated near Nainital. The bucket proved to be useful as it was used to collect water from the Bhimtal lake which was poured over the raging forest fires.

Here, we tell you a bit about the Bambi Bucket and its history.

The Bambi Bucket- What is it?

The Bambi Bucket is actually a specialized aerial firefighting tool. It is not the very first time that the Bambi Bucket has come to use. Actually, the bucket has been proven to be useful since the 1980s. The bucket is actually a lightweight container that is used to release water to the required areas from underneath a helicopter. It is the pilot-controlled valve that helps in releasing the water.

What makes the Bambi Bucket even more interesting is the fact that it comes in a wide array of models and sizes. The capacity of the bucket can go to some 9,840 liters as well. An important feature of the Bambi Bucket is the fact that it is quite easy and quick to fill it. Surprisingly, it can actually be filled from multiple sources such ass swimming pools, lakes, and more. This makes it possible for firefighters to refill it quickly and release the water at the areas that require it.

History of the Bambi Bucket

It was in the year 1982 when the Bambi Bucket was invented by a Canadian business named Don Arney. As per various tales, the idea of creating a bucket like this hit Arney when he realized that the aerial firefighting water buckets were highly inefficient to cater to the needs. 

The buckets that were used initially were actually designed of plastic, solid fibreglass and metal frames. The issue with such buckets was that they were too rigid to actually fit inside the aircraft. In order to carry these buckets, they had to be trucked to the fire site. Moreover, while the purpose of these buckets was to set off fire, these buckets failed to a greater extent that these used to get dispersed into a spray, and this drastically reduced the impact.

The advent of Bambi Bucket eliminated all these problems and more. These buckets did not come with any limitations. The Bambi bucket could be easily stored within the aircraft. Moreover, it creates a greater impact in setting off the fire as it discharged a solid column of water. This led  to a more accurate and impactful water release.