Fire Safety in the Harshest Environment
The American stations in Antarctica are just a tiny spark away from erupting into a disastrous blaze, driven by unprecedented winds and artificial heat. However, fires are a rare occurrence on our planet's southernmost continent. Only seven are recorded and most occurred mid-century. This is the result of dedicated fire stations and roles carried out by people like Mike Epperson, a Project Manager for fire protection. His company, Leidos, manages multiple contracts involving the design, construction, and maintenance of the United States Antarctica Stations. His insight through our hour-long phone call is fascinating, but what Mike isn’t telling me resonates through his voice, translated in enthusiastic details of the perilous flights and extreme conditions only found on the bottom of the earth. I am speaking to a thrill seeker. His mind is carved in the shape of an engineer, but his soul belongs to an explorer.
A Shared Continent on the Brink of Change
Antarctica belongs to everyone. Approximately 35 year-round stations and 40 summer stations are sprinkled across its icy surface, boasting more than 20 different international flags. The Antarctic Treaty System that guides the rules of this place will be reaching its expiration date in 2026. These regulations specify that stations are for research purposes only, no nation can claim the land, prohibit mining and military activities, and set visitation limits. As that comes to an end, there are whispers in the political background among multiple countries. It is speculated that Antarctica holds substantial natural resources underground, and numerous nations are competing for the chance to acquire them. While global warming fuels Antarctica’s slow melt, these conversations are ramping up at an interesting time.
The United States’ Three Antarctic Stations
The United States has three year-round stations, two coastal and one central. McMurdo and Palmer lie on opposite ends of the Antarctic coast, accessible by ship or plane, both requiring extensive travel. Starting with domestic flights, team members land at New Zealand’s Christ Church for a medical evaluation and to procure their cold weather gear. If the team is lucky and the weather is right, travelers board a military E-130 plane for the remaining 5-hour flight. If the more robust E-130 plane isn’t available, travelers board a small C-17 and experience nerve-wracking turbulence.
Journey to the South Pole: Amundsen-Scott Station
Those going to America’s third station, Amundsen-Scott, or “The South Pole,” board an additional C-130 with skis strapped to its landing gear and head into the heart of Antarctica. With Amundsen-Scott, the United States claims this most central spot on the continent (arguably the world), a place nestled on the earth’s southernmost axis—better known as the geographic south pole—but among the notoriety it stands alone and isolated for thousands of miles. During its nine-month winter, its temperature gets as low as -110 degrees with winds close to 20mph. The transit is rough getting to any of the three locations, but when visiting Amundsen-Scott, should the weather rattle you, the isolation could. The South Pole hosts about 150 visitors in the Summer, but travel is shut down after October. About 45 people remain isolated in the South Pole station during the winters with no means of an exit.
Mike’s favorite location is the South Pole, for the record.
“It takes a unique person to go to the South Pole; they dedicate their life to this research,” Mike explains. “The station is completely self-sufficient. It’s a fascinating place.”
Constructing in Antarctica: A Logistical Feat
The logistics of building on Antarctica are ten times the logistics of simple travel to the continent. To reduce the chance of the blog post veering off course, I confined my inquiries to topics pertinent to the domestic industry—such as infrastructure, utilities, workforce, and safety. How do you transport items, set them up, and persuade individuals to participate?
Prefabrication and Shipping Challenges
Robust, pre-assembled and prefabricated parts are key, but they must be deconstruct-able enough to pack into an airplane or ship and they must be easily reconstructed to avoid too much labor surviving the elements. Shipping proves a unique game of Tetris and the assembly a gamble on good weather and working machines. Shipping containers, such as Conex containers, are favored for their affordability and compatibility with Military C130s, featuring frames designed to endure turbulent flights. Prefabricated pods are also popular, used for temporary facilities that need mobility. In expansive locations such as McMurdo—located near the ross ice shelf—teams have the capability to construct buildings using concrete and steel, yet this requires extensive planning and foresight. Ideally, the core and shell are assembled during the brief 3-month summer, while the interior is completed over the winter, similar to many projects in the United States. But just like state-side construction, there are plenty of issues pushing these delivery dates. Material lead times are 1-year at minimum between design, fabricating, testing for weather, and shipping.
Site-Specific Foundation Solutions
The ground beneath each station differs. At McMurdo, where bedrock is present, the team employs explosives to achieve the necessary depth for placing pre-cast piers. In other parts of the continent, team members must be a little more creative, and the best resources are sometimes right on site. Numerous foundations are constructed from densely packed snow that satisfies the compression standards of concrete. In certain regions, wind-driven movement of ice and snow causes elevation changes, necessitating additional piers that can be adjusted to higher or lower positions to accommodate this variability.
Power, Water, and Waste: Station Operations
Once a building is built, how does it function? This is where Mike’s love for the South Pole swoops in with the infatuation of Bill Nye. The McMurdo station is equipped with a nearby power plant, while the Palmer station relies on generators powered by arriving planes and ships. Both stations feature wastewater treatment facilities and have ships available to transport excess waste. Many of their facilities utilize solar panels when sunlight is available.
The South Pole, however, is on an island. The facility contains numerous generators and auxiliary generators, fueled by additional fuel supplied to visiting aircraft during the three summer months. When winter arrives, these power sources operate throughout the year without needing a refuel. These stations’ power redundancy likely rivals a massive data center. And just like large data centers risk a huge loss in an outage, an outage for this station would expose around 45 people to extreme temperatures. To put it in perspective, the NWS Windchill chart shows human exposure in -45 degrees with winds reaching 15 mph would cause frostbite in less than 5 minutes. The South Pole hits around -100 degrees and 20 mph in the winter.
“You’re isolated for 9 months of the year and dependent on the power left with you and the team. It’s all about trusting the station we built.”
Water Sourcing and Waste Management
There is a 2-mile layer of ice deep beneath the South Pole. The team shoots this icy layer with warmer water to melt their water supply, a method similar to fracking. This ancient glacial melt is so pure, it would strip the human body of its minerals if consumed without added minerals, so the supply is fortified. Waste management is handled with a classic technique, using a system similar to an old-time hole-in-the-ground outhouse. The team carves a well in the ice and eventually it fills into a giant poopsicle (direct quote). As unsavory as this method seems, it utilizes few chemicals and clearly separates waste from water supply.
Life and Labor in Antarctica
The People Behind the Mission
Mike’s bond with the people of the Antarctic program made a good interview a great one. Construction is traditionally a “good old boys” industry. Even as that landscape is shifting, there has always been a deep comradery among its ranks rivaling the bravado of the marine corps. The increased risk and distinctive experience frequently strengthen those connections even more. Similar to a military recruitment, workers must pass a medical exam and physical assessment. While younger men and some women make up most of the labor force, everyone is in top shape.
“These people don’t join for the pay,” Mike confessed, though the average pay and travel perks aren’t too shabby, “They join for the experience.”
Rules, Routines, and Social Life
Upon arrival at the site, stringent regulations are enforced. Alcohol consumption is limited, and the limited number of bars at the major stations shut down early in the evening. Given the demanding 60–90-hour work weeks in harsh conditions, even a minor hangover could lead to a deadly mistake. Nevertheless, the dormitories and worker pods provide opportunities for socializing, featuring pool tables and Wi-Fi access for most of the day. The South Pole offers fewer amenities, but the camaraderie among its small community suffices for those choosing to work there.
The Human Cost of Construction in Extreme Conditions
Construction, one of the most hazardous industries on earth, and extreme temperatures come together to create one of the riskiest jobs in the world. Mike lost two team members to an accident a week after our interview. He told me via email, but that simple exchange exposed a vulnerable moment that stripped him of fellow comrades and exposed the potential risks he faces with each trip. Mike is not fighting a war, but in the face of risks, construction is a field that survives on sense of accomplishment and human connection. It is devastating when one is lost. His team members could have fallen or gotten frostbite or experienced a hitch in machinery. Maybe their helicopter went down. I could assume the cause of the casualties given our previous interview, but we did not dive into details. He left for Antarctica to investigate the incident and would not return for a while.
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