E is for Engine

Type 4 BLM Engine

Working on an engine was one of my favorite fire seasons. I loved driving a monster truck built to protect and preserve rather than destroy.

I loved the hard work of hauling hose and humping around a 30lb bladder bag.

I even learned to enjoy the daily preventative maintenance, as mundane as it seemed sometimes.

There are so many facets in wildfire, and even though I'm doing a taste test of as many as I can, I have to say that there's something really great about working on an engine.

Some people like to say that engine life is a luxury. There are a lot of nice things about working on an engine that you don't get with hand crews. One of those is that you often get to sleep in a bed at night. Engines roll primarily as initial attack, which means they are the first resources called to a scene.  A lot of the time and engine or two can get a fire contained and controlled quickly.

Engine work is nice because you work with a small crew, which means it's easier to have a routine and established ways of doing things.

Some people like to say that engines are for lazy firefighters, and while that might be the case with some engines, I don't think it's true for most. At least it wasn't true for my crew. We had intense physical training every day that often included quick-paced, steep hikes, P90X workouts, and lots of pull-ups.

Rolling Attack

There were a few times when we would use "rolling attack"on fires (a technique where one person drives the engine around the edge of a fire while another walks with a hose, spraying down the fire), but because the majority of fires in our district were on the steep slopes of mountains, my engine crew did a lot more hiking and carrying bladder bags than anything else.

Engine work, like most firefighting work was exhausting. And I often arrived back at the station looking like this:

Sometimes, I looked like this: 

And riding in the engine through Utah's West Desert pretty much always looked a lot like this: 

Do you have a favorite wildland fire crew? 

Any comments or questions about being on an engine? 

Fire Away!

D is for Death and Dancing

Yesterday my friend Sarah wrote a post about Death.  It was one of the first things I saw in the morning as I flipped through my emails. I didn't expect it to be such an omen as it turned out to be.

I didn't write my D post yesterday. So, today it will stand for Delay.
Because yesterday it was for Death and Dancing.

My grandma died yesterday.


It sure brings Sarah's post a little closer to home than it did originally. And I can't help but agree with her that "...part of the human experience is wrestling with the concept of Death." 

I've never really understood the sadness that seems to come with death until now. 
I miss my grandma. 
She was always a big part of my life as I grew up. Since she lived right next door, I saw her pretty much everyday as a child. She always had little cakes and cookies. And at church she always carried mints and lemon cough drops which I ate like candy. 

Her favorite food was ice cream. Her least favorite was steak. She never ate meat that I knew of, not even in hamburger helper, and for the longest time I thought that was so weird. Now, it makes a lot of sense to me. She loved diet root beer, and would often mix it with orange juice which I thought was really gross until I tried it. 

For the most part she was a calm, gentle, and mostly quiet woman. But she had a boisterous laugh, and if she was ever upset or feeding the cats her voice could be heard throughout the entire neighborhood. 

My Movie Star Grandma

She loved cats, and always kept a bucket of cat food behind the door, so she could feed pretty much every cat that would come to her calling (every cat in the neighborhood). 

Grandma loved to dance. 
She was never an incredible dancer or anything. Her dancing seemed more like a waddling sway, but she loved to dance and laugh and smile and sing. 


I know that death is one of those mysteries that we never understand during life. No one can ever tell us what it's like, but I've wondered what it would be like to watch someone die. How must that feel? Do the energies in the room change as spirits shift out of the body? What's the difference between life there in the body and when the life has gone? 

Death is often the subject of mystery novels, but no matter how skilled you are as a detective, always the one mystery remains after cause of death has been determined: Where does the life go? 

I could speculate as many do, but I'm content knowing that my grandma lived a good life and that wherever her soul or her life-energy has moved to, her love will always resonate throughout time and space. 

Here's to the mysteries of existence, the power of one person's love, and the joy of dancing through life. 

Fire Away!

Charlie as in Calorie Counting

When I met the assistant superintendent for the Jackson hotshots he said what I think most of my phone interviewers have thought,"I thought you'd be bigger." This coming after I had disclosed my height and weight a couple times already in phone conversations. The truth is, I'm a very small person in terms of my physical body. I am five feet and four inches tall. I currently weigh 110 pounds, which is about ten pounds lighter than I normally am and would like to be. I think in all of my training the past two or three months I've not kept up with the calories I need to maintain my preferred body weight. Because I'm tired of people looking at me and thinking I couldn't possibly be a fire fighter, and because I want to look a little more lean I've decided it's time to start counting calories. I've never paid attention to calories before--mostly because it seemed that only people who wanted to lose weight watched their calories. Rather than trying to cut calories and avoid fat, my goal is to increase my caloric intake to exceed those spent during regular metabolic processes as well as those spent in my workouts which are only getting harder as I move further along in my half marathon training. To anyone trying to lose weight, I know that it's hard; but look at the bright side: at least it's cheaper to lose weight than it is to gain it. :-) Eating more calories has meant more trips to the store which means more money it of my bank account, not to mention all the extra time I spend on cooking, eating, and doing the dishes. Sometimes I wish I were in need of losing a few pounds just so I could be saving a few extra pennies. Another challenge I'm faced with that weight losers have going for them is appetite. When you exercise you trend to have a smaller appetite. I'm trying to get onto a regular schedule to make eating easier, because going off of my appetite doesn't keep up with my needed calories when I'm exercising six days a week. I never thought I'd say it but, I'm now officially a weight watcher. My heart goes out to all the weight watchers and calorie counters out there, whichever way you're trying to top the scale! Fire away!

B is for Boots

Before I could do anything in the field as a wildland firefighter I had to have the right footwear.

I love shoes. Don't take this the wrong way... I'm not exactly a stereotypical girl who loves to go shoe shopping and owns several different pairs of high heels and whatnot. I love how shoes are so versatile. Maybe hats are the usual metaphor for being versatile and having many trades, but shoes seem to be the more literal indication of just how many different personas I wear. 

I have the more practical shoes such as my chacos, snow boots (maybe not so practical for Mississippi), and rock climbing shoes (also maybe not so practical for MS...). I have my dressy shoes--yes, I do own heels. I have my "Bride's Maid shoes" which are a pair of sparkly sandals that I've worn as a bride's maid a few times. I've got my comfort shoes: brown slippers which I fondly call "slippies" and my worn out Vans that also, of course, slip on. 

Shoes are important for a lot of things, but I've never had a more important pair of shoes than my fire boots. Never has a pair of shoes protected me from some of the most dangerous aspects of nature (except maybe my snow boots). There's almost nothing more important on the fireline than your feet. If you've got blisters then you can't work. If you can't work, then you don't get paid and you don't have any fun.

The standard for fire boots is that they must be all leather (no nails in the bottom; it must be sewn on, and no steel toe). They must also be at least 8 inches from heel to calf. Some people go so far as to have boots that lace all the way up to the knee--especially good for sawyers, I've heard.

Later I'll try to post more about breaking in your boots the right way, how to take care of them, and how to not get blisters, so stay tuned and stay safe!

Fire Away!

A is for Alpha and Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

This month I'm taking on the blogger A to Z challenge. What's better than starting off with the alphabet itself?

The military uses what's known as the NATO phonetic alphabet. The more accurate name for this is International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet. "Phonetic" is technically the wrong term because it refers to the actual sounds that a single letter makes. The NATO alphabet on the other hand is used to solve the common problem of spelling out words during radio communication. Sometimes B sounds like too much like D, so there's a specific word for each letter. B as in Bravo. D as in Delta. In firefighting we use this alphabet a lot. Whether it's communicating on the radio about what resources have arrived on scene (maybe it's a helicopter with the call sign 2BH, then over the radio we'd say Two Bravo Hotel) or simply spelling out words or names that are easily mixed up with something else (Boyle vs Doyle) this alphabet makes communication a lot easier.

 Here's the complete Spelling Alphabet (with phonetic pronunciation): 
A-Alpha (AL-FAH)
B-Bravo (BRAH-VOH)
C-Charlie (CHAR-LEE)
D-Delta (DEL-TAH)
E-Echo (ECK-OH)
F-Foxtrot (FOKS-TROT)
G-Golf (GOLF)
H-Hotel (HOH-TEL)
I-India (IN-DEE-AH)
J-Juliet (JEW-LEE-ETT)
K-Kilo (KEY-LOH)
L-Lima (LEE-MAH)
M-Mike (MIKE)
N-November (NO-VEM-BER)
O-Oscar (OSS-CAH--although if I said it would sound more like OSS-KER)
P-Papa (PAH-PAH)
Q-Quebec (KEH-BECK)
R-Romeo (ROW-MEE-OH)
S-Sierra (SEE-AIR-RAH)
T-Tango (TANG-GO)
U-Uniform (YOU-NEE-FORM)
V-Victor (VICK-TAH--or VICK-TOR)
W-Whiskey (WISS-KEY)
X-XRay (EKS-RAY)
Y-Yankee (YANG-KEE)
Z-Zulu (ZOO-LOO)

My favorite letters to use are Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (WTF). And I especially like to pretend I'm on the radio--"Whiskey Tango Foxtrot; Over."

Do you use this international spelling alphabet in your job? Why? Is it effective?
What's your favorite acronym?

Comments or suggestions on the Wild Fire Lady blog?

Fire Away!

PT: Physical Training

One of the major safety tools firefighters have is physical fitness. Physical training is one of the most important things a firefighter can do to stay safe on the job.

Hotshots (like me) are required to meet extra rigorous physical requirements.
Right now I'm training so I can be able to:
1. Hike 3 miles with a 45lb pack in 45 minutes
2. Run 1.5 miles in 10 minutes and 35 seconds (or less)
3. Do 40 sit-ups in 60 seconds
4. Do 25 push-ups in 60 seconds
5. Do 7 or more pull-ups

I have no doubt I can hike the 3 miles in under 45 minutes with the 45lb pack. I've done it every year for the past 5 years. I'm still working on running 1.5 miles in 10:35. Last week I ran it in 12:45, which isn't bad considering I was really tired... Yesterday I ran it in about 11:30, which is good considering how windy it was outside and that I wore the wrong shoes...But, I've still got a ways to go before I'm at 10:35. I should be able to do it easily considering that's only a 7 minute/mile pace, which was about what I ran in high school for cross country.

Push-ups are tedious. They're a little boring to do over and over again, and probably I look funny doing it, but push-ups are a big deal in my job. It's about upper body strength. So far I can do 34 push-ups. I can also do 40+ sit-ups, and at least 8 pull-ups. So, at least my upper body is making good progress. I just need to keep working on my speed endurance when I run. I have to admit though, I have a lot more fun doing upper body workouts than I do running on a treadmill. Maybe running will be easier for me when I can do it outside more.

Budget Cuts and How It Could Affect My Job

Today my lovergirl texted me and asked if my job for the summer would be secure against the forced federal spending cuts coming from the White House.

There's lots of talk right now about sequester cuts and "shutting down the government."
I caught a snippet of some news channel where President Obama was talking about how these cuts will affect people like the janitors in the White House--the people who clean up after all the major political leaders of this country. He said that they will have cuts in their wages.

As a wildland firefighter I have worked for the Bureau of Land Management under the Department of the Interior. Funding for my job comes from the government and I am therefore a government employee. As this article  mentions, wildland firefighters and other seasonal employees (such as recreational technicians, park guides, etc) may not have the opportunities that have previously been available because of budget cuts.

It's a scary thing to think about when your livelihood depends on a seasonal job like mine does.

I think the BLM, Forest Service, and Park Service will each take a toll with whatever sequester cuts are put in place. Last year my office wasn't allowed to hire as many resources as in previous years. One problem with this (other than the fact that several people went without a job) is the added pressure for those who are still employed. Last year the fire season for my district was insane. Grasses were dry. Humidity was low. And fires grew to thousands of acres. The few firefighters still working were then met with the pressure of filling the duties normally filled by twice as many resources. It put our firefighters, local towns and residents at a greater risk than normal because we didn't have the people to meet the work load.



























I heard Obama mention that safety was his main priority. I hope that he doesn't just mean safety in terms of having a national guard to "protect" our country. I hope that wildland firefighters are included in his priorities, because if our fire crews have to take a toll by hiring fewer firefighters, our safety on the line and our communities involved in wildfires this summer will be at risk.

Here's to hoping for Safety First on all fronts--but especially for the wildland firefighters.

Questions? Comments?

Fire Away!