The parking lot at Kamiah Middle School was
full last week with fire trucks, crew vehicles, and a plethora of
porta-potties and hand wash stations, while the adjacent ball fields
were covered with firefighter tents. If not for the recent cool, wet
weather, one might think that a full-blown fire camp was being
established at the school grounds. In some ways it was, for the first
time in over a decade, the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests hosted
the annual Basic and Advanced Firefighter Training (or Guard School)
here in the Clearwater Valley. A combination of classroom instruction
and field exercises took place Monday June 12th through Thursday June 15th, culminating with a written exam for Basic Guard School students on Friday morning.
“Basic and Advanced Guard School were
held at Kamiah Junior High School from Monday - Friday last week and
both were a huge success in my opinion” stated Brandon Skinner, Deputy
Fire Staff Officer for the Forests. Skinner also added that “This is
the first time the Nez Perce-Clearwater NF has hosted a Guard School
since 2010.”
There were approximately 80 students
from the USFS, IDL and the Nez Perce Tribe in attendance for Guard
School this year. It can be a lot of work and effort to coordinate an
event like this, but the long-term benefits for the young firefighters
and the public they serve are worth that effort.
“I had the opportunity to come out a
couple of times and it was great to see our new employees from multiple
Agencies learning from the high caliber of trainers we have here”
stated Forest Supervisor Cheryl Probert. Probert also wanted to add,
“Thank you to everyone in fire leadership from all our local agencies
for taking on roles to support the training and encouraging our
emerging leaders to teach modules, run activities and step up in other
ways. That sort of integration across agencies and throughout the
Forest is key to our safety and success, and its excellent to see folks
start off with that understanding.”
A consolidated interagency guard school
is intended to replicate a large fire camp setting and begin giving
younger wildland firefighters the necessary training and experiences to
be safe and successful during the fire season. This also helps to
create an environment where firefighters from different duty stations
and agencies can begin to develop cohesion and familiarity with each
other prior to the active wildfire season.
Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest
officials would like to thank The Nez Perce Tribe, Idaho Department of
Lands, Kamiah School District #304, Kamiah Middle School, and the
Community of Kamiah for helping to host this successful training.
2023 Basic and Advanced Guard School Students and Cadre Members. Photo by USDA-Forest Service.
Nez
Perce-Clearwater National Forest Supervisor Cheryl Probert addresses
the Guard School students before their first classes on Monday June 12th. Photo by USDA-Forest Service.
Guard
School students practice the art of rolling (or butterflying) hose
after it been deployed and used. Photo by USDA-Forest Service.
Students
receive instruction on how to properly construct fire-line with hand
tools during field day exercises. Photo by USDA-Forest Service.
Ryan
Nuxoll, Moose Creek RD Assistant Fire Management Officer, gives
students instructions on how to properly assemble and utilize a propane
torch. Photo by USDA-Forest Service.
