About

The simple yet highly effective design of the Heli-Hydrant™ comes from the mind of Battalion Chief Mark Whaling. In 1977 Mark began his 42 year career at the age of 17, working on a youth brush clearing crew for the Marble Cone fire near Big Sur, Ca. He advanced through volunteer and seasonal firefighting jobs, a rural one man station, and smaller county fire departments until he got on with the LA County Fire Department. Starting as a firefighter, over the course of 30 years he worked in haz mat, paramedic, POI officer, captain and eventually retired as a Battalion Chief. 

In the 90’s Mark had many innovative ideas for improving the efficiency of wildland firefighting and in his garage, with the help of his children, he started to bring those Ideas to life!  First came the Whaling Pack, a backpack designed to give a firefighter a more efficient way to deploy hose over rugged terrain.  In 1996 he founded Whaling Fireline Equipment Inc. and started selling hose packs all over the world. He continued to develop innovative firefighting solutions like the CAV, a field command vehicle, which provides instant access to equipment, with a clean cab concept to protect firefighters.  

The idea for the Heli-Hydrant™ came while Mark was on the Crown Fire in 2010. As his crews were battling spot fires on a ridge in 50 mph winds, he watched a helicopter put out one fire, then leave to fly 15 miles away to access more water. As it left it passed over a one million gallon reserve tank. By the time the helicopter returned it was too late, and the fire was advancing on homes. To put out those home fires, Mark and crews used water from the same reserve tank the helicopter passed. Mark couldn’t help but think that if the helicopter had had access to the tank, those homes could have been saved. This was the “Ahha” moment when the idea for the Heli-Hydrant™ was born.   

For the next ten years, Mark began to ideate and research. He spoke to pilots about their needs and ideas, he learned about water systems and how to best implement his idea.  And in 2017, a simple errand to have repair done on a radio led to a collaboration with Gordon Arnold to design the technology for pilot activation. Back in the garage again, Mark and Gordon tinkered away on test after test until they got it just right. Through connections, recommendations and peoples belief in Mark’s idea, the first prototype was built and tested in 2018, with the collaboration of Battalion Chief Tim Arnold and the Orange County Parks Dept. 

With it’s overwhelmingly successful testing, the first Heli-Hydrant™ was constructed by the Yorba Linda Water Department under the direction of Marc Macantonio. For this, Mark was named one of Orange County’s Most Influential People of 2019 by the Orange Country Register. With Yorba Linda, Mark continued learning and improving the ways Heli-Hydrant™ connects best with water systems and he realized quickly that he needed a contracting partner. 

On recommendation he got connected with Glenn Chavez and after their first conversation it was a perfect match. Glenn, a seasoned contractor with over 30 years of experience was a great choice, but what made the fit so obvious, was that Glenn had the problem solving skills and ingenuity to accommodate for the uniqueness of each site’s needs. He honed this ability in the times he has spent a considerable amount on time also building water and solar projects around the world in remote and unique locations. 

For the next five years Mark and Glenn installed 14 Heli-Hydrants™ around southern California, and have many more in progress. They have continued to learn and improve the Heli-Hydrant™ with every installation. During those 5 years Marks’ son Riley Whaling, a fireman/paramedic in Southern California, also joined the team. To eliminate confusion, In January 2026, Mark, Glenn and Riley officially made Heli-Hydrant Inc. its own corporation. 

The Heli-Hydrant™ was innovated from the experience of someone who saw real needs in wildland firefighting and came up with effective solutions. It’s construction and design were crafted from a seasoned contractor who cares deeply about quality. This combined experience of over 70 years, is all focused on providing a product that will continue to protect communities and improve lives.