Wildfire Today

News and opinion about wildland fire

Wildfire Today

Tag: firefighter health

The awkward silence when the season ends

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 10 Comments on The awkward silence when the season ends
Lone Peak Hotshots
Lone Peak Hotshots. Screenshot from their 2020 video.

Wildland firefighters on crews that are often deployed on endless 14-day assignments far from home may become acclimated to the high energy adrenaline-fueled environment. They are part of a team working toward the same clear objective, constructing fireline, installing hose lays, or mopping up. The goal is usually very obvious, and when done they can look back and see what they accomplished while part of a group that over months together could complete each other’s sentences, know what each would do when faced with a pulse-elevating situation, or deal with boredom while waiting for a ride back to fire camp.

When the fire season is over, their environment goes through a metamorphose. Almost overnight they may find themselves with their spouse, significant other, children, parents, non-fire friends, or, alone — a completely different situation from the previous six months. Some firefighters adapt more easily than others. Those that don’t, may experience mental health issues and mild or severe depression. Spouses or children of the often-absent firefighter may also show symptoms.

In the last five years we have learned that the suicide rates of wildland firefighters is “astronomical”, according to information developed by Nelda St. Clair of the Bureau of Land Management in 2017. It is high even when compared with structural firefighters, which is also higher than the general population.

As we approach the off season for wildland firefighters who are employed less than full time, if you know someone who seems very depressed, it is OK to ask them if they are thinking about suicide. Some people think this will spur suicide attempts but that is not accurate. Encouraging them to talk could be the first step leading them to safety.

This video encourages that communication. (I’m told that some of the people in the video are YouTubers. It features Hannah Hart, Liza Koshy, Markiplier, Meredith Foster, Orion Carloto, Remi Cruz, Shannon Beveridge, Tyler Oakley, and Tyler Posey.)

Members of the military returning from deployment can also have difficulties readjusting to life back at home. A Department of Defense webpage has information on the subject that appears to be directed toward the spouse. Here is an excerpt.

“Depression and Suicide Prevention

“Depression can happen to anyone – resulting in long-term feelings that affect an individual’s mood and daily activities. Service members may be facing challenges during reintegration that seem completely overwhelming, but understanding the warning signs for depression and suicide can help you intervene and get the them the help that they need. Signs to be aware of include:

      • “A range of emotions and changes in personality, including repeated and intense feelings of sadness, anxiety, hopelessness or pessimism
      • A loss of interest in life or hobbies and prolonged periods of crying or sleeping
      • Substance abuse or withdrawal from friends and family
      • Displays of emotional distress in online activity
      • Excessive feelings of guilt, shame or a sense of failure
      • Physical symptoms like weight loss or weight gain, decreased energy, headaches, digestive issues or back pain
      • Talking about dying or seeking information about death.”

 

Help is available for those feeling really depressed or suicidal.

How 30-person hotshot crews could help firefighters recuperate between assignments

Author BillPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 43 Comments on How 30-person hotshot crews could help firefighters recuperate between assignments

And allow them more time at home during the fire season

KNP Complex of fires, Inyo Hotshots,
Inyo Hotshots on the KNP Complex of fires, Sept. 29, 2021. InciWeb.

Guest post
By Tim Swedberg

On September 26, Wildfire Today published an article titled, Survey of Wildland Firefighter Spouses Finds the Job Creates Stress for the Family. The Survey tabulated responses from 1,841 persons including 1,599 from the Forest Service. One of the findings was “78.1 percent of respondents feel stress due to wildland firefighters’ absence.” Respondents also identified the need for “less demanding work schedule that provides for more days off.”

The critical issue is fatigue and its effects

Much of the work/rest research was completed over 20 years ago at the Missoula Technical Development Center (MTDC) and the University of Montana. The Spring 2002 MTDC No. 5 Health and Safety Report provided recommendations focused on: work/rest, assignment length, shift length, and much more.

From this research the National Wildfire Coordinating Group provided a guidance letter dated February 6, 2004, which states, “for fatigue management purposes and in line with credible research recommendations, a 2-day-off-after-14-day assignment standard (exclusive of travel) has been adopted”. 

The 2002 research recommendations were a step forward, but (to the best of my knowledge) there has been little or no new wildland firefighter fatigue research commissioned or developed that could drive revision of the current policy.

Considering the increased deployment tempo, fire intensity, and size of current-day fires, it is both prudent and essential to revisit and validate or update the existing 20-year-old work/rest/fatigue recommendations with new and on-going research information. The Joint Fire Science Program, Forest Service Research Stations, and universities can lead in the development of critical new information to update fire management policy.

Is there a way to address the concerns of 78 percent of families that “feel stress due to wildland firefighters’ absence”? The answer is YES!

Back to the roots of Hot Shot crews

In the late 1940’s El Cariso, Del Rosa, and the Los Prietos Hot Shots were created as 30 person crews. In those early days all 30 firefighters would deploy to an incident.

1970 El Cariso Hot Shots
1970 El Cariso Hot Shots

Today, I suggest a return to the 30-person (3 modules) Interagency Hotshot Crew (IHC) strength. Rather than dispatch all 3 modules, only 2 modules would respond. This leaves a 10-person module at home for a week of quality rest exclusive of travel. After 7 days the module left at home would replace one of the modules on the fire and one of the modules on the fire would return home for a week. This weekly rotation would continue throughout the fire season and could be accomplished without exceeding the 14-day assignment standard as no crewmember would work beyond 14 days. The rotation provides certainty for families that once every three weeks the firefighter will be working at their home unit.

Adoption of this suggestion means that Incident Management Teams will always receive a full two-module IHC Type 1 crew as is common practice today. The rotation also provides the IHC crew with 10 fresh replenishments every seven days exclusive of travel.

Clearly existing work/rest policies are detrimental to both firefighters and their families as evidenced by the Wildfire Today reporting of November 4, 2017 Suicide Rate Among Wildland firefighters is “astronomical.” The good news is, a fix could be developed and adopted without legislation. Let’s see if the rotating 30-person crew can diminish stress at home and on the fireline. I look forward to your thoughts.

—

Tim Swedberg is a retired Palomar Hotshot firefighter and captain, fuels manager on the Mt. Hood National Forest, and during his last 10 years served as Communications Director for the Joint Fire Science Program —  for 40 years of total service.

Congress may try again to create a firefighter cancer registry

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 9 Comments on Congress may try again to create a firefighter cancer registry

4:35 a.m. MDT Oct. 20, 2021

Pine Gulch Fire Colorado
Firefighters on Pine Gulch Fire during night shift, August 17, 2020. InciWeb.

A bill soon to be introduced in the House of Representatives, the Tim Hart Wildland Firefighter Classification and Pay Parity Act, would accomplish several things to improve the pay and other working conditions of federal wildland firefighters. We covered that in another article.

One of the provisions in that legislation, the creation of a “Federal Wildland Firefighter Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease Database”, is interesting. About three years ago the Firefighter Cancer Registry Act of 2018 which passed July 7, 2018, required that the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), an agency within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), establish a Firefighter Cancer Registry. The goal was to better understand the link between workplace exposures and cancer among firefighters. NIOSH has been piddling around with this for four years, led by Kenny Fent, accomplishing very little.

Kudos to the legislators who will attempt to get it done another way, after apparently giving up on the NIOSH Firefighter Cancer Registry.

Articles on Wildfire Today tagged “cancer registry.”

NWCG video about firefighter mental health

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 6 Comments on NWCG video about firefighter mental health

3:11 p.m. MDT Sept. 29, 2021

Firefighters crew
Still image from the NWCG video below.

The National Wildfire Coordinating Group has published a video for firefighters about about mental health. It features several former or current firefighters who have been trained as critical incident stress management peer supporters or CISM Clinicians.

@DOIWildlandFire tweeted about the video today, encouraging everyone to view it. The video was posted July 19, 2021 but as of today it has only been viewed 83 times, perhaps because it is “unlisted”.  We suggested to them that the status be changed, which should make it possible to search for it and also show up on lists of NWCG videos.

The presenters make an interesting point comparing physical fitness and mental fitness. As a firefighter you have to work at both of them, and they lay out several ways to stay mentally fit.

If you are a firefighter or the spouse or family member of one, spend 18 minutes watching this video.

UPDATE at 1:30 p.m. MDT Sept. 30, 2021: As you can see above, the video uploaded July 19, 2021 is no longer available.

At 11:56 a.m. MDT today @DOIWildlandFire posted on Twitter, “Earlier, we accidentally published a @NWCG video on supporting mental health for wildland firefighters before the video was finalized. The post has been deleted. We look forward to sharing the completed video with you soon.”

The version of the video that had been online for more than two months was excellent, and could help thousands of emergency management personnel. We hope that the NWCG can finalize it and make it available. Firefighters need this. It is a slap in the face to advertise it, then remove it. That is not the kind of setback a person suffering from mental health issues needs.

Survey of wildland firefighter spouses finds the job creates stress for the family

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 36 Comments on Survey of wildland firefighter spouses finds the job creates stress for the family

The responses from 1,841 were tabulated

Firefighter Bull Complex of fires
Firefighter on the Bull Complex of fires, OR, Sept. 2, 2021, Inciweb.

The Grassroots Wildland Firefighters (GWF) conducted a survey of spouses of wildland firefighters that are connected with the federal government. The 1,841 responses included in the analysis found disturbing trends among the work force that until now may not have been clearly documented.

The primary goal of the survey was to measure the impacts that a career as a federal wildland firefighter (WFF) has on both firefighters and their families. The GWF is asking that the systems of support grow with the demands of the fire seasons.

Here are samples of their findings:

  • About half said they may have considered separating from their partner due to strain on the relationship caused by the job.
  • Only 11 percent often or regularly feel confident if something were to happen to their partner while on duty, they would be taken care of by their federal agency.
  • About 17 percent report partners have been injured at work resulting in a financial hardship.
  • When those in a dual fire career relationship were asked if they’ve left or considered leaving their own fire career due to the difficulty of having children, 79 percent of respondents the questions applied to, reported yes.

Below are documents released today by the GWF.

[pdf-embedder url=”https://wildfiretoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/GRWFF-Highlights-of-Data-Summar2.pdf” title=”GRWFF Highlights of Data Summar2″]

 

The nine-page document below has detailed findings from the survey. (Look for the down arrow; hover or tap at the bottom to see more.)

 

[pdf-embedder url=”https://wildfiretoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/WFF-Partner-Survey-Data-Summary.pdf” title=”WFF Partner Survey Data Summary”]

Legislation introduced in Australia and the U.S. to benefit wildland firefighters

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , , , 5 Comments on Legislation introduced in Australia and the U.S. to benefit wildland firefighters

Presumptive illnesses recognized for forest firefighters in Victoria, and in the U.S. a housing allowance and mental health program

11:51 a.m. MDT Sept. 23, 2021

firefighter Dixie Fire California
A firefighter on the Dixie Fire in Northern California. Photo by Luanne Baumann posted on InciWeb August 11, 2021.

Important legislation has been introduced in Australia and in the United States that would have a very meaningful and positive effect on wildland firefighters.

Victoria, Australia

In Victoria, Australia a bill titled “Forests Amendment (Forest Firefighters Presumptive Rights Compensation) Bill 2021” extends the presumptive disease program to forest firefighters. It also includes “surge firefighters” who are government employees normally in other roles, but who perform firefighting duties during the fire season as part of their agency’s surge capacity as needed.

The presumptive disease program ensures that if a firefighter is diagnosed with any of the 12 listed cancers, they will not have to prove that it was caused by their employment, and it will be considered an on the job injury.

The cancers covered are brain, bladder, kidney, non-Hodgkins lymphoma, leukemia, breast, testicular, multiple myeloma, prostate, ureter, colorectal, and oesophageal. The employee must have been on the job for 5 to 15 years, depending on which disease they have.

If the legislation is passed, the presumptive right will apply to individuals diagnosed on or after June 1, 2016 if the diagnosis occurs during the course of a person’s service as a firefighter or within 10 years after they have ceased to serve.

This is an important issue that should also be addressed in the United States.

Lily D’Ambrosio, the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, explained the program in detail during the second reading of the bill. Here is a link to the legislation.

United States

In the United States amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), if they are approved and the bill is passed, would affect wildland fire in two ways.

A housing allowance would be provided to any federal wildland firefighter hired at a location more than 50 miles from their primary residence. The amount would be based on the cost of housing in the area.

And, a mental health awareness and support program would be created for federal wildland firefighters including:

  • A mental health awareness campaign;
  • A mental health education and training program that includes an on-boarding curriculum;
  • An extensive peer-to-peer mental health support network for federal wildland firefighters and their immediate family;
  • Expanding the Critical Incident Stress Management Program through training, developing, and retaining a larger pool of qualified mental health professionals who are familiar with the experiences of the wildland firefighting workforce, and monitoring and tracking mental health in the profession to better understand the scope of the issue and develop strategies to assist; and
  • Establish and carry out a new and distinct mental health support service specific to federal wildland firefighters and their immediate family, with culturally relevant and trauma-informed mental health professionals who are readily available and not subject to any limit on the number of sessions or service provided.

In addition, each federal wildland firefighter would be entitled to 7 consecutive days of leave, without loss or reduction in pay, during each calendar year for the purposes of maintaining mental health.

Both of these, a mental health program and a housing allowance, if approved would be huge. Along with salary, these two issues have a large impact on retention. Too many federal firefighters live in their cars because the cost of housing where they are required to work is more than they can afford on the money they make. The mental health issues, including very high suicide rates, have been well documented.

If these two amendments do not end up in the final signed NDAA legislation there is a backup plan. Colorado Congressman Joe Neguse, Co-Chair of the Bipartisan Wildfire Caucus, would introduce the Housing Our Firefighters Act and the Care for Our Firefighters Act.

Mr. Neguse is also planning to introduce in the near future bills to overhaul federal firefighter pay, benefits and classification.

The Grassroots Wildland Firefighters have been instrumental in getting these issues in front of committee staffers and politicians.

Another amendment in the NDAA would require a study of the risks posed to Department of Defense infrastructure and readiness by wildfire, including interrupted training schedules, deployment of personnel and assets for fire suppression, damage to training areas, and environmental hazards such as unsafe air quality.