Janja is stressed. She’s has a big test coming up, one that decides what she’ll be doing this Summer. No, it’s not for school – it’s for firefighting. Specifically, for wildfire fighting.
If everything goes according to plan this will be Janja’s second year fighting wildfires for the BC government’s Wildfire Service. A sector of the government that is dedicated to suppressing wildfires as they try to spread across the province. Last year was the third worst year on record in terms of area burnt with 1600 fires burning nearly 8700 square kilometres of land, and it’s hard to tell if this year will be any worse. It can be a very tough job and it takes the right person to be able to do it. Janja’s been through the hiring process before but she still finds it a little nerve wracking. She made time to talk with me before heading to what she calls “boot camp”, a six day refresher course to make sure everyone is up to the challenge of what waits for them this summer.
Janja (Andrew Hynes)
The main cause of concern is a make-or-break test called the WFX-FIT. Janja described the test as “the hardest part of the job, you’re never gonna work as hard as you worked on this test”. Basically the test is you carrying heavy shit over and over again and it’s trying to simulate what it would feel like to be working in really difficult terrains. For example, the test has participants walking up and down steep ramps to replicate mountains and dragging weighted sleds to make it feel like you’re pulling a hose through mossy bogs. Bottomline, it’s a tough test and if you don’t pass it then you can’t be a wildfire fighter – you get sent home and all your training was for nothing. If you pass the WFX test you stay and complete boot camp where you learn how to work around helicopters, how to work pumps, lay hose, and all the fun safety training that comes with the job.
On top of the physically demanding test there’s also a personality side to the hiring process. Applicants are asked what is called a STAR question in which the interviewee must identify the Situation, the Task at hand, the Action taken and the Result. This is just to see if you’ll be a good team player and fit into the role you’re given.
If everything goes well you then get deployed to one of three fire bases that you picked. These bases respond to fires in their region, obviously some are more demanding than others. The people at these fire bases get to decide if they want you stationed there or not, so connections are key. It’s also based on availability because there is understandably a lot of turnover in this young workforce. Most people who are involved in the BC Wildfire Service range between 16-30 years old and a lot of people decide to walk away from the job because of anything from a boring season with very little fire activity or a really intense season with lots of fires.
Boot campers (Province of British Columbia / Flcikr)
Janja also says that your first year is kind of your worst. Wildfire fighting is very hierarchical in nature and because of that rookies are at the bottom of the barrel. It can also be tough for older people entering this workforce to have their higher ups be 18 year-olds.
The pay of the job is also super variable. You get an hourly wage but that wage goes up and down depending on what the fire situation is like. If you’re on standby, just waiting for something to happen you’re only making a third of your hourly wage, but if you’re working a fire you get overtime which as we all know is where the money of any job gets good. So what happens when there’s a wildfire? Well, according to Janja, there are different types of crews that are sent to respond to different sizes of fire. Basically, the bigger the fire, the more resources get used and that causes more overtime and higher spending. So what the Ministry usually does is send smaller crews of 3 or 4 to control smaller fires. These are called initial attack crews. The next size up is a unit crew, normally made up of about 20 or so people and these folks are sent in when the fire gets bigger. Their job is to contain and stop it from spreading as much as possible.
When you’re on standby it’s the complete opposite. You are basically doing busy work making sure that everything is ready for when a call comes in. Some of this work includes (but is not limited to): truck checks, equipment checks, working out, weather station upkeep, public outreach, and even running mock scenarios to make sure all the procedures are fresh in your mind.
BC Wildfire crew responding to a wildfire (Province of British Columbia / Flickr)
These positions are also always moving around. When disaster strikes in other parts of the province different members from various fire bases can be relocated to help with the bigger fires or even floods. Janja says that sandbagging for flood prevention can also be a big part of her job. There’s even times when wildfire fighters are called to different provinces or different countries. Many Canadian wildfire fighters were called to Australia during their intense wildfires a couple years ago.
At the end of the day wildfire fighting is a job. There are highs and lows and Janja is just excited to be able to get back to doing it after taking a year off to tree plant. So, the next time you’re complaining about the smoke ruining your view of Grouse or the coast, think of Janja carrying coils of hose up a mountain and through a bog.