Deep in the forest of Joint Base Lewis-McChord Training Area 13, the next batch of Washington National Guard wildland firefighters honed their skills on Sunday, April 28, in preparation of the upcoming fire season.
Approximately 127 guardsmen participated in the annual wildfire training program led by the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) in Roy.
Guardsmen had previously completed online training, but they put the skills they learned to the test for the first time at the training event. They began at a slow pace to establish their skills before they simulated a live fire event to test their readiness for a real-world wildfire situation. By the end of the day, guardsmen received qualifications at the Firefighter Type 2 level.
According to Washington Public Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz, who attended to observe some of the training, the state has already endured 50 wildfires in 2024 and projects to see a significant number more of them as the temperatures rise. She said the training teaches each wildland firefighter the essential skills to reduce the impact of wildfires.
“We need more and more resources, and that’s why the training here with the National Guard is so significant. We are in the process of training our seasonal firefighters,” Franz said. “We always bring in around 500 to 600 seasonal firefighters to help us during our fire season. We also bring in our local firefighters, and we also rely on our National Guard. At any point in time when we have a state of emergency and need more resources, it is so great to have them here and trained and ready to go.”
The training began with a shelter test, as firefighters were required to deploy a fire shelter within 30 seconds. Guardsmen rotated through four stations, including water handling, using pumps, tanks and engines, fire line construction and more.
While the National Guard’s ground firefighters services haven’t been called upon much in the last couple of years, DNR Fire Academy Program Manager Sean Kibbe said the guardsmen will be crucial in the event that the state or Pacific Northwest endures a significant wildfire season.
“It’s extremely important to have this training because if resources get tapped and if the entire West is burning or all of Washington is burning, it becomes a safety concern for those firefighters that need time off,” Kibbe said. “They can work 16 hours a day for two or three weeks at a time. If they’re not getting breaks, that’s when accidents occur, so it’s really important to have multiple levels of availability as the season progresses.”
Franz said that the majority of the wildfires in Washington in 2024 have been caused by humans and are typically preventable. She hopes residents and visitors of the Pacific Northwest will educate themselves about how to help their local firefighters.
“I always try to urge the public that they can do their part by preventing this risk in the first place so we don’t even have to put our wildland firefighters on the line,” she said. “We really need people to take all precautions. We’re seeing more and more fires on the west side of the state than usual. In fact, last year we had more fires west of the Cascades than ever in recorded history. It is likely to continue to be the same this year. We have droughts, but we also have people that are in the woods and have less awareness about the risk of fires whereas a lot of central and eastern Washington have been immersed in wildfire for the last decade. The west needs to really wake up and be vigilant and realize how significant the risk is.”
Kibbe encouraged people to volunteer this wildfire season or look to join the National Guard or DNR if they are interested in a challenging but fun job.
“Most of the people that have ever done it, even if it’s a season or two, said it’s the greatest job they ever had or the funnest job they ever had. It’s a challenging job,” he said. “If you’re looking for a job where you face some sort of challenge and develop ways to overcome it, there’s lots of avenues. We’re out there try ing to provide a service to the public and protect what we can.”
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