From the front line to the fireline: Veterans train to fight wildland fire
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WASHINGTON – Military veterans will prepare to transfer the skills and teamwork they honed in the military to the field of wildland firefighting, as they participate in an intensive training event hosted April 6-9 by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Department of the Interior, and Team Rubicon, a veteran-led disaster response nonprofit.
The training, which is being held at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Patuxent Research Refuge in Laurel, Maryland, is one of several such sessions taking place throughout the nation this year. Federal agency instructors will educate Team Rubicon members in wildland fire suppression tactics, including communication techniques, fireline construction, equipment operation, and other critical wildland firefighting skills. Similar training sessions were recently held in California, Texas and Florida, and more sessions will take place this spring in Colorado, Ohio and Idaho.
The BLM and other firefighting agencies are preparing for the 2018 western wildland fire season, which typically begins in early spring in the Southwest and moves north during summer. In recent years, fire activity has been occurring year-round.
“This is a perfect match of two talents,” said acting BLM Deputy Director Michael D. Nedd, who is taking part in the training and who also served as a U.S. Army Ranger and in other special operations units. “It just makes sense to match our veterans’ skills, work ethic and experience under pressure with wildland firefighting. Some Team Rubicon members that take this training may decide to pursue wildland fire careers, which has the potential to further enhance our firefighting force and mission to keep American families and public lands safe.”
In April 2015, the Department of the Interior and BLM formed a partnership with Team Rubicon, because many of the skills veterans learned in the military translate to wildland firefighting, such as teamwork; decisive leadership; risk mitigation and management; logistics; and emergency medicine. In 2015 and 2017, Team Rubicon members trained as wildland firefighters responded to wildfires in Alaska, Nevada, California, Oregon and Washington during two of the most severe fire seasons in recorded history.
By engaging veterans in disaster response, Team Rubicon seeks to provide them with a sense of purpose, community and identity sometimes missing following their military service. Since two Marines founded Team Rubicon in response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the organization has responded to floods, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes and other severe weather damage, helping disaster survivors all over the globe.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.