Annual Ishi Fire Crew Exercises, largest in the state

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Annual Ishi Fire Crew Exercises, largest in the state

Annual Ishi Fire Crew Preparedness Exercise

PAYNES CREEK - Inmate fire crews from throughout northern California converged at a sight east of Red Bluff on Tuesday for a week-long "hands on" practice in preparation for the upcoming fire season.

Thursday the public has been invited to attend the event as hundreds of firefighters are put through their paces.

The Annual Ishi Fire Crew Exercises, the largest in the state, will provide an opportunity for 47 fire crews to be evaluated on the physical conditioning, firefighting knowledge and their ability to perform safely.

Though the exercise was scheduled to start on Tuesday, preparation began well before that date.

It is vital that crew members acclimate themselves for the warmer weather ahead to reduce the heat-related injuries which can occur in the fire environment. Under competitive pressure, the fire crews will hike into the incident site, construct fire lines, and deploy fire shelters under simulated emergency conditions.

CalFire, in conjunction with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation operates 35 conservation campus throughout California. In addition, CalFire jointly operates other camps with the California Youth Authority.

Together, this partnership of state agencies, inmates and wards provides a force of more than 2,700 trained firefighters, for all types of emergency incident mitigation and resource conservation projects.

For 20 years, the Annual Fire Crew Preparedness Exercise has been an important part of preparing for fireseason in northern California. It is an outstanding opportunity to put the year's training to the test and to gear up, both physically and mentally, for the ensuing fire season.

The event is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Lunch from a CalFire mobile kitchen unit will be served to participants, special guests, media and other observers.

Information is available by calling Ishi Conservation Camp, 527-2352, or the CalFire Fire Prevention office at 528-5124.

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Thursday, May 1, 2008