From Here to There: Fighting Fire in Canada

[This article originally appeared in the 2024 Fall Issue of Two More Chains.]

By Erin Hurley, Operations Manager (Detailed)

Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center

By June 2023, Canada was on fire.

With over five million hectares (1 hectare=2.47 acres) burned, the already record-breaking season—that would continue well into October—had local Canadian resources tapped out.

The United States was one of 12 countries that mobilized fire personnel and resources to Canada. Through the “US-Canada Arrangement for the Exchange of Wildland Fire Management Resources,” according to the NIFC end of year report, 2,774 resources traveled to Canadian provinces to assist in fire management during the 2023 season. 

(The “US-Canada Arrangement for the Exchange of Wildland Fire Management Resources” and other international arrangements are coordinated through the U.S. Forest Service, Fire and Aviation Management national headquarters, in cooperation with the Department of the Interior Office of Wildland Fire. The accompanying Annual Operating Plans are coordinated by the National Multi-Agency Coordinating Group. International mobilizations to or from the U.S. are coordinated by NIFC. All of these groups worked together on the development of the International Mobilization Guide and are closely linked during international mobilizations.)

James Norvell, Nate Giles, and Kyle Esparza from the Payette National Forest in McCall, Idaho, were some of these resources who were called to help the Canadian wildfire response in 2023.

Off to Edmonton in His GOV

The month of June 2023 in the Pacific Northwest and Rocky Mountain states had been mellow for fire personnel. Smoke effects from Canada had already begun to moderate temperatures and there was minimal atmospheric moisture, resulting in no lightning.

“If it hadn’t been super quiet at home, we wouldn’t have been able to send the resources we did to Canada,” said Brent Sawyer, Operations Manager at the McCall Smokejumper Base. The irony of smoky skies and no local initial or extended attack was not lost on the McCall firefighters. When the opportunity to go to Canada arose, they took it.

James Norvell was ordered as a Logistics Section Chief (LSC3) with a Type 3 Incident Management Short Team from the Great Basin (Region 4). Great Basin Team 7 (GB T7) received their Resource Order on June 21, with a report date of June 24.

“Once I had my Resource Order, it was a whole process of making sure I could use my government computer and cell phone internationally, along with planning my travel and making sure I could cross the border,” James explained.

After checking all of the mobilization boxes and making sure he had his passport and Idaho “star card” driver’s license (the star on license indicating it is a form of federally accepted identification—known as “REAL ID” in all the other U.S. states), James took off for Edmonton in his government owned vehicle (GOV).

He drove straight up Idaho’s panhandle into the wilds of Canada, listening to podcasts on Human Performance and getting updates on the fires. Fifteen hours later, in-briefed for his international assignment and ready to engage, he traveled another eight hours to Rainbow Lake, Alberta, a small town bordering the Northwest Territories.

Once in Rainbow Lake, GB T7 oversaw personnel from Canada, Australia, Costa Rica and Chile. The next 14 days became a lesson in nomenclature as James ordered resources and supplies to support current and emerging fires around the town.

At the end of June, Nate Giles was one of four personnel from McCall on the first round of United States Smokejumpers to head to Canada. By September, four separate contingents—representing over a hundred smokejumpers alone—had been sent up from the Lower 48 in rapid succession. Twelve smokejumpers from McCall boosted Fort St. John, British Columbia in 2023.

Upon arrival in Canada, American smokejumpers encountered not only their old parachutes (the U.S. Forest Service smokejumping program began the transition to ram-air “square” chutes in 2018 and those phased-out round parachutes of yesteryear had been sent to Canada for use), but also their former “Jump-42,” a DC-3 that was previously owned by the U.S. Forest Service and stationed in McCall. 

Things Were Very Similar – But Different

Upon arrival in Fort St. John, British Columbia (the primary smokejumper base for the Canadian jumpers), Nate quickly realized that things were very similar—but different. “Canada, Australia and New Zealand all use the Incident Command System,” he said. “Culturally, we are all very much the same. Where things get dissimilar is when it comes to terms and equipment—and accents.”

The American firefighters had to quickly take note of what it meant when someone was trying to find a “strangler” (a hose clamp), or what it meant to have pieces of “jewelry” (hose fittings). Like James discovered on the Logistics and Ordering side of things, nomenclature could be a hurdle.

Even by the third round of jumpers that were sent to BC, there were still travel surprises. Having arrived in Sandpoint, Idaho (a six-hour drive from McCall) ready to cross the border at the Point of Entry, Sean Cronin, Kyle Esparza, Erik Berke and Zach Munk were told that they needed to wait for permission.

The flow of communication from our National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) to Customs had stalled out. These four firefighters were instructed to prepare for at least a few hours’ delay.

“It was frustrating that we couldn’t get across the border. Knowing that they, Canada, wanted us up there and we had zero control of when we could cross,” said Kyle, “We were in a beautiful spot, but more than anything we wanted to be out in the woods of Canada on a mosquito-infested fire.”

That delay turned into an overnight. They didn’t cross over the border until the next afternoon.

If You’re Traveling to Canada as a Wildland Firefighter –

What You Should Know

So, what does a wildland firefighter need to know when traveling to Canada for work?

While traveling over the northern border, on the bequest of Uncle Sam himself, doesn’t seem daunting, it does carry its own set of requirements—all the “hurry up and waits” and communication hurdles.

First and foremost, you will need to have a U.S. passport, or at least a driver’s license REAL ID (“star card” in Idaho). In the beginning wave of 2023, a passport was required. But by July, an agreement was reached between the United States and Canada that a REAL ID/star card would deem wildland firefighters eligible to cross the border by land. Air travel still officially required a valid passport.

Secondly, once your Resource Order is in hand, you may still have a list of items to accomplish for NIFC, your employing agency, and possibly even the U.S. Department of State. In addition, the conversations at the upper echelons may put a hold on your travel—as discovered by Kyle Esparza and his colleagues when they reached the border at Sandpoint, Idaho.

Communication

Communication is at the forefront of our 10 Standard Firefighting Orders and is omnipresent in everything we do. From all accounts, upon their arrival, firefighters from all nations were welcomed with open arms and readily integrated into the Canadian fire culture. Given an array of citizenship amongst his coworkers, James Norvell traded every single one of his shirts that he had brought with him. “If I can give one tip,” he assures, “it is to bring extra T-shirts.”

Nate Giles recounted the American flag that hung next to the Canadian flag in the Fort St. John base the entire time they were there. He also recalls the great sense of pride that he felt upon reentering the United States on the 4th of July and realizing what a boon the U.S. firefighter presence had been to the Canadian firefighting efforts that summer.

But what happens when terminology doesn’t align, and the same word means very different things once you’re in a Canadian province? Maybe you order up a “hotshot” and get a cache trailer, or someone asks to borrow your “strangler” with the promise that they will return it once they are done.

Knowing that you are walking into a language barrier when in an English-speaking country is helpful, a glossary of some common terms has been compiled for you in this issue of Two More Chains (see sidebar below).

Recognizing and Appreciating Our Cultural Differences

One day you may find yourself in a country that you can drive to, one that uses ICS and some familiar equipment and tactics, and speaks the same language. You may even forget that you are no longer on your home unit.

It’s important to recognize and appreciate the cultural differences to our north. Most of all, have fun and enjoy the experience.