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 […]
Firefighter in the Field: From Firetack to Helitack
By: Josh Cardinal I would like to start out with a little background about myself: I am a 28-year-old First Nation member from Saddle Lake, and I am working out of the Lac La Biche Forest Area. This is my fifth year firefighting, but my first year working on a Helitack crew (which I’m enjoying […]
Firefighter in the Field: Update From The Edson Unit Crew
The Edson Unit Crew has had an incredibly busy start to the 2016 wildfire season. We expected dry conditions with the low amounts of precipitation that fell over winter; however, the fire behavior has been truly surprising. We have had the pleasure of working with crews from all over the world to keep Alberta safe. […]
Alberta Wildfire 