Rewards and sacrifices “It is honestly one of the most rewarding parts of my life here. I’m just constantly amazed by the guys that respond,” he said. “Farmers are extremely busy people but have a level of making their own schedule. The volunteer model requires large numbers of people but not all the time. It is really the best way to provide emergency services to rural areas.” Family time at home or work on the ranch is often interrupted by emergency calls, Farmer said, adding, “If you are married to a volunteer f iref ighter, you are a volunteer firefighter because you are the one to put the kids to bed by yourself or the one that sometimes finishes a two-person job alone.” The Ca l i fornia State Fi ref ighters Associat ion estimates there are 50,000 f iref ighters in the state, 15,000 of them volunteer s . Of 1,100 tot a l f i re departments, the majority are either entirely or mostly composed of volunteers. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the employment of firefighters will grow 8% from 2020 to 2030 as the threat of massive fires continues. Last year a lone, 8,786 f ires burned an estimated 2,568,941 acres across California. Livelihoods at stake Potter Va l ley Fire Department volunteers were instrumental in helping extinguish destructive wildfires in 2017 and 2018, which scorched thousands of acres in Mendocino County. The 2017 Redwood Valley Complex Fire burned a 2,000-acre ranch Farmer’s family leased, killing 45 cows. “The fire was moving so fast they weren’t able to run away,” he said. While recovering from a broken back at the time, Farmer said he and others patrolled at night for the first few days to make sure the fire didn’t cross the road. The 2018 Mendocino Complex Fire burned for more than three months, destroying additional ranch land in Mendocino County as well as Lake, Colusa and Glenn counties. Farmer said the amount of fuel that builds increases the severity of the fires. “Fast-growing annual grasses that came in from other parts of the world tend to grow really fast and then die for the summer and leave an incredible amount of light, flashy fuels,” he said. “This has an absolute effect, not just on intensity of the fire and how it affects native species, but also whether or not firefighters can even touch it.”
Kyle Farmer, who volunteers with the Potter Valley Fire Department, says wildfires are becoming more severe as fuel builds.
8
March/April 2022
Powered by FlippingBook