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Flyers
Heroes in training
The Vale, Ore. wildfire fighting engine crew hikes up Rinehart Butte during physical training on June 24, 2021. The wildfire fighters are admired and oft-praised in their community for their arduous and life-threatening services. But few understand what goes on inside the gates of the Vale District Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to prepare them for the job.
“People think we just sit around until a fire happens then we go squirt some water. But that’s not the case,” Al Crouch, Vale BLM’s Fire Information Officer and Fire Investigator said.
Eastern Oregon's fire season usually starts in July, so the firefighters arrive in early June to start their training. They come to the BLM with a wide range of backgrounds, experiences and reasons for joining. But all of those differences are set aside with each new crop of seasonal firefighters.
In July after an intense month of training, crews are sent to stations located across Malheur County, where they spend the rest of the fire season.
“People think we just sit around until a fire happens then we go squirt some water. But that’s not the case,” Al Crouch, Vale BLM’s Fire Information Officer and Fire Investigator said.
Eastern Oregon's fire season usually starts in July, so the firefighters arrive in early June to start their training. They come to the BLM with a wide range of backgrounds, experiences and reasons for joining. But all of those differences are set aside with each new crop of seasonal firefighters.
In July after an intense month of training, crews are sent to stations located across Malheur County, where they spend the rest of the fire season.
Aidan Schlupe, a member of the Helitack crew, disassembles his gear after a day of training on June 16, 2021. Vale’s BLM consists of three teams: the Helitack crew for air support, the engine crews for ground support, and the heavy equipment crew to operate the larger machinery such as bulldozers. During fires, the dispatch center can also call on the national crews based in Vale: the Hotshots and the Snake River Valley (SRV) crew, a group initially for migrant workers that was started in Vale.
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