It is the Wild West for Wildfire Training

Intro and Background

The longer days seem to be stirring up a lot of interest in wildfire training activity. Some groups have developed their own internal material, some instructors use the BC Wildfire (BCWS) S100 curriculum as is, some use on-line refreshers, some put large groups through simultaneously, some don’t do the practical day, and others feel they have enough experience to meet their needs. Instructor quality and experience varies, class sizes may be cumbersome, delivery is variable and required skills may not be learned to the necessary standards. Suitable locations for the practical day are difficult to find and might not be safe and conducive to acheiving the learning objectives.

The training does have a shelf life. Just like first aid there are limits to the time periods allowed between training. Regular updates are required.

To be honest I have never heard of anyone checking on workers’ wildfire training. The only time it will be an issue is if you cause or lose a fire , or if someone gets injured during a response, because of inadequate training.

There are a few agencies and institutions working on improvements but in the meantime as you plan your spring training make sure you get the product that meets your needs.

Legally Required to Respond

The Wildfire Act and Regulations require anyone that works in, or adjacent to, the wildlands of BC to respond to any fire on, or near their worksite. A government official is also authorized to direct organizations and individuals to supply crews and equipment to assist in wildfire response if needed.
This applies to all of us, at all levels in all industries, institutions and organizations from rookie treeplanter to senior managers, consultants and researchers. I have never seen any exemptions. Not responding may lead to substantial penalities.

Most service agreements and insurance policies also detail the requirement to respond. Not responding may mean a breach of contract or denial of an insurance claim.

If you decide to walk away from a worksite wildfire I suggest you have a well thought out and documented rationale for your decision. The MacLeod S100 for Industry will help you with this.

Moral Obligation to Respond

Many of us have the privilege of making a living on the land. With that privilege comes some responsibilities. As stewards we have an obligation to help keep the adverse effects of unplanned wildfires to a minimum, especially if we caused them. The taxpayers of BC can’t afford to keep enough paid responders around to deal with every incident. Those of us that work in rural and remote BC must be prepared to take action and assist organized responders in dealing with wildfires. We have a lot to offer.

We Must be Adequately Trained

Worksafe BC regulations and guidelines state that anyone responding to a fire must be adequately trained in fire suppression and that the full two-day BC Wildfire S100 is the expected training standard.

The MacLeod S100 for Industry iincludes all the material in the BCWS S100 and S185 with significant updates to better prepare participants for current conditions.

I have talked about the shortcomings of the current S100 content and delivery at length in the past. I urge caution if you are presenting yourself as a wildfire expert and teaching the BCWS S100 as is. It does not adequately prepare most people to safely deal with situations they are likely to encounter.

MacLeod Forest Services has taken the BCWS S100 material and retooled it to better reflect the more variable fire seasons, increasingly erratic fire behavior, and lack of organized assistance experienced in recent years. It is designed to better prepare people to be on their own when dealing with a wildfire for extended periods of time.

We are calling our course the S100 for Industry. Some attendees have suggested calling it the “Enhanced” S100.

Learning Objectives of the S100 for Industry

Those of us who have worked in the bush for any length of time have recognized long ago that fire seasons are more variable and fire behavior more erratic. Recent research is supporting this.

Lori Daniels has worked with an esteemed group of researchers to complile all their findings about the 2023 fire season. It is worth a read.

https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full/10.1139/cjfr-2024-0092

If you live, work, or play in rural and remote BC for any length of time you will have an interaction with a wildfire, likely more than once. We can’t base our wildfire prevention, preparedness and response actions on descriptors like “normally”, “usually” or “traditionally”.

I want to keep everyone affected by a wildfire safe and help them meet their legal obligations to respond. My S100 for Industry is designed for people who may “occasionally” have to deal with a wildfire, either at their work locaction or when temporarily working for BCWS. I have also presented it to wildfire contract crews and community wildfire groups and it has been well received.

My main objective with the S100 for Industry is to ensure participants can accurately assess a wildfire and develop an appropriate, safe, and effective action plan to respond. They will also be able to demonstrate the five key skills required to take action. All must be completed to a standard that exceeds those detailed in the current S100.

What is different in the S100 for Industry?

The MacLeod Forest Services S100 for Industry covers all the material presented in the BCWS S100 as well as:
• History of Wildfires
• BC Wildfire Service Resources and Response System
• Updated Fire Behavior Section
• Added basic prevention and preparedness legal obligations
• Increased the number of Hazards reviewed from five to eleven
• Improved the Entrapment Avoidance section and added a Burn-over Survival component
• Expanded and simplified the Initial Wildfire Assessment and Response Planning procedures
• Presents a list of alternate tasks if direct action on a wildfire is not viable
• Included last minute Firesmart Actions to protect structures and infrastructure
• Expanded the Line Location and Construction section to increse effectiveness and reduce unnecessary damage
• Added directions on how to communicate and interact with BCWS crews when they arrive

Shrike Hill Aug. 2021. Myself and 30 people burned over in a Safe Zone. The Safe Zone size was barely adequate and we had a very close call.

I spent time that winter researching current Safe Zone size recomendations from the US Forest Service and added the findings to the MacLeod S100 for Industry

Assessments
Written assessments are conducted at the end of each section. The theory day ends with three table-top group responses.

The practical day of my training covers the five key skills. All participants must be able to demonstrate the required skills. People that have physical or health issues may verbalize the required steps of each skill.

Upon successful completion participants are given a letter verifying the training and a wallet red card detailing the instruction.

Instructors

I am the Chief Instructor and spend every summer on the front lines of wildfire response. I have substantial experience on several recent, well known, large wildfires.

For the practical day student/instructor ratio is kept to 5:1. Only current wildland fire-fighters are used as instructors on the practical day. This ensures that all skills taught represent the best current standard practices.

Mark 3 Pump Station

5:1 Student/Instructor Ratio, all instructors are current wildland firefighters

Equipment and Training Facilities

Last year I partnered up with a Woodlot owner to use their ranch and property in Kelowna as a dedicated training center. The qualtiy of the training produced at this facility is far superior to any other training I have conducted. This is especially true for the practical day. Instructors can focus on safely teaching the core skills and not have to worry about all the variables encountered in adhoc training locations.

Announcement of Western Wildfire Training Center

I will travel to put on courses and I am hoping to develop alternate dedicated locations so we can provide the same high quality level of training as we provide at our Kelowna facility.

All pumps and equipment are the same kind as BC Wildfire utilizes so attendees will be familiar with the common response tools in use in BC.

Dedicated training location eliminates variables making training safer and more effective. Students can focus on the five core skills.

Reviews

All participant evaluations of the MacLeod S100 for Industry have been very favorable. A few people that had little or no bush experience found the volume of material on the theory day was onerous. I am working on how to resolve this.

The best feedback I have received is from participants who have had to deal with a fire on their worksite. Even those that have taken the BCWS S100 numerous times stated after taking the S100 for Industry they felt much better prepared to deal with their incidents. All were successful in responding to their wildfires safely and effectively and were able to prove their Due Diligence.

Summary

The law states that everyone who goes to the bush to work is required to respond to any wildfire on, or near, their location.

Worksafe states that anyone working on a wildfire has to have taken the full two-day S100 and had regular refreshers at least annually since.

Any non-compliance may lead to costly penalites, breach of contracts or denial of insurance claims.

If you take the MacLeod S100 for Industry:

• you will be better prepared to make appropriate decisions when you are affected by a wildfire.
• your response will be safer and more effective.
• you will have up to date fire behavior and safety information.
• you will have skills that match current best practices
• you will be able to operate the fire suppression equipment currently used on the fireline.

As you shop around for training make sure you get the best possible product to meet your needs.

Give me a call to book a session.

Doug MacLeod