Firefighter in the Field: The Other Side of Wildland Firefighting
By: Natalie, Helitack Member, Calgary Forest Area We talk a lot about battling wildfires and the long days on the fireline. What about the other side of being a wildland firefighter? When we are not chasing down smoke calls, what else are we doing? Let me tell you about all the projects we have on the […]
Firefighter in the Field: Making an Impact
By: Josh Fort McMurray was the most high-profile wildfire I have ever been a part of. I first heard about the fire back in May when I was still in Type I Helitack training. Along with everyone else in training, I could not help but feel helpless as the wildfire continued on and through Fort […]
Firefighter in the Field: An Office in the Sky
By: Trina Some joke that a veteran lookout observer can wake up in the morning, step outside their cabin, take one long look up at the sky, and feel in their bones what kind of fire day it’s going to be. Of the 127 lookout observers in Alberta, the majority have at least a few […]
Firefighter in the Field: My First Fire Season
By: Mary Schidlowsky, Grande Prairie Unit Crew In 2012, the Grande Prairie Unit Crew was established; the first 20 person Unit Crew in the province was formed after the devastating Slave Lake wildfires of 2011. Our group is structured to fight wildfire across the province, to be a self-sustained action crew and work long hours […]
Firefighter in the Field: A Day in the Life of a Wildfire Dispatcher
By: Brooke Sterling Hey everyone, I’m Brooke Sterling and I’ll be acting as your dispatcher blogger for the next few months. I’m looking forward to keeping you updated on the happenings in the Edson radio room. The outcome of each day is entirely unknown when I enter the fire centre in the morning and sign […]
Alberta Wildfire 