Brandon Eubanks, a firefighter with the U.S. Air Force Academy, attached a video camera to his helmet while working on the Black Forest Fire, providing an interesting view into the world of a wildland firefighter.

The Department of Defense, even though they rarely fight wildland fires, does a much better job of providing photos and video of their firerfighting activities than the federal land management agencies.

They also produced the news clip below that features the military’s participation in the firefighting effort on the Black Forest Fire.

Photos provided by the Department of Defense of military helicopters working on the fire are at Fire Aviation.

Perhaps if the public knew more about what wildland firefighters actually do, they would be more prone to support their efforts in various meaningful ways. There is no doubt that this concept has occurred to the Department of Defense.

(UPDATE June 14, 2013: if you liked these videos, check out one we posted today  produced by the Colorado Springs Fire Department which gives the viewer a close-up look at how one of their engine crews protected a residence as the flames approached.)