海角大神

Paul Catino鈥檚 summer internship has put him on the front lines of the West鈥檚 cataclysmic fire season.

He and other workers at timber company Campbell Global launched an initial attack against a wildfire on company land, working until the early morning hours with bulldozers with flashlights to clear a 鈥渃ontingency line鈥� to box in the fire. He was back at it for five or six hours the next day, and the following day worked 12 to 15 hours.

鈥淚t was an unreal experience for me,鈥� says Mr. Catino, a senior at Oregon State University in Corvallis majoring in forest management.

The Oregon Department of Forestry gave a shoutout to the company last week, saying that quick work by employees played a 鈥渉uge role鈥� in minimizing the fire鈥檚 footprint.

And Mr. Catino says he鈥檚 been thanked by several people who recognized his uniform at the Safeway in Sweet Home, Oregon.

鈥淧eople have thanked me quite a bit. It鈥檚 very nice, especially now when so many communities have been affected,鈥� says Mr. Catino, who is working on the Holiday Farm Fire. It鈥檚 one in a series of fires up and down the state that have burned about 1 million acres 鈥� nearly double the 10-year average.

With historic fires burning in Oregon, the state needs all hands on deck. So last week, Democratic Gov. Kate Brown put out the call to universities and colleges: Please don鈥檛 penalize students like Mr. Catino who are wildland firefighters for missing the start of classes. They鈥檙e needed on the front lines.

Seasonal firefighters make up the bulk of America鈥檚 forest firefighters, and college students play a critical role. In Oregon, upward of 30% of the crews that contractors put together are students. It鈥檚 high-paying work that can cover college tuition, but with longer fire seasons, it鈥檚 become a challenge for those who manage fires.

鈥淔ire seasons have gotten longer and longer due to climate change and other factors,鈥� says Sara Brown, manager for the National Forest Service鈥檚 fire, fuel, and smoke science program in Missoula, Montana. College students play a big role in wildland crews all over the country, she says, and the 鈥渕illion dollar question鈥� is how agencies that deal with fire can adjust their work forces.

One idea gaining traction is professionalizing firefighting so there are fewer seasonal workers. Federal agencies are trying to听increase the number of permanent employees听through a wildfire apprenticeship program听and conversion of temporary positions to permanent or permanent seasonal positions.

Risks and rewards

鈥淚鈥檝e been a professor and a college student, and it鈥檚 nearly impossible to say, hey, can we delay school for these few people?鈥� says Dr. Brown, who fought fires all through college and into her master鈥檚 degree. 鈥淪tudents who come back late 鈥� several weeks, a month, maybe longer, there is no way to catch up.鈥�

She has fond memories of firefighting. Having grown up in the rural town of Oakridge, Oregon, she loved the outdoor work, that it was physically challenging, that a crew could come together and do something greater than one single person. During her career, she served on a helicopter crew, a hotshot crew, and as a smoke jumper.

鈥淚 loved that it was a little bit dangerous,鈥� she adds. She paid for that as a smoke jumper, when her parachute collided mid-air with her partner鈥檚 over the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico. She lost a leg because of it.

Today鈥檚 college students are well aware of the risks 鈥� and rewards 鈥� of their summer jobs. They learn about safety in training that typically lasts a week for beginning firefighters. Firefighting is grueling work with 12-hour days or more that can go for 14 days straight. Conditions can be smoky, dusty, and hot on remote, steep terrain. Wildland firefighters face the potential of a sudden wind shift and change in fire direction, rolling logs or rocks, stepping into a hole that鈥檚 a burning stump, and vehicle accidents.

When hazards include 300-foot trees

Corinne Heiner Buystedt, who just graduated from the forestry school at Oregon State University in Corvallis, recalls the summer of 2017, when she was on a crew in the state鈥檚 mountainous Three Sisters Wilderness. They worked late into the night to hand-dig a line to stop the fire鈥檚 advance in a heavily forested area, but had to return the next day.

That morning, she suddenly heard a crew above them start yelling. She looked up and saw a 300-foot cedar tree coming down on her and her crew. They yelled for everyone to run 鈥� she running perpendicular to the tree and those below her running downhill. The moment it hit the ground, she ran back to check on everyone. Within 30 seconds, the crew lined up. All were accounted for and there were no serious injuries.

鈥淚t was one of the scariest moments of my entire life,鈥� she recalls. And yet, the recent graduate loves fighting fires. She loves the forest, true, but also the camaraderie and teamwork. 鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of like a family.鈥� By the time of the tree incident, she had been trained as a squad leader who manages a group of four to six people within a standard crew of 20. At first, it was hard to be taken seriously as a woman, she says, but after she earned her squad鈥檚 respect, 鈥渋t was great.鈥�

She describes her tree-episode squad as 鈥渞eally incredible,鈥� but also traumatized as they continued working. 鈥淎 lot of guys told me they didn鈥檛 want to go into a certain area unless they knew I was watching the back door 鈥� had my eyes on the fire behind them.鈥�

With his study of forest management, Mr. Catino is disturbed by what he sees as a wasteful, reactive approach to fire, instead of a proactive one. Often, he says, he鈥檒l go out on a fire and, in his view, the appropriate thing is to let it burn out rather than suppress it. But that鈥檚 not what the orders are.

This questioning is a good thing, says Randall Rosenberger,听associate dean of student success at Oregon State University. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 where we get change,鈥� as college students with firefighting experience move up into management across the fire field, he says.

Delayed start to the semester

Not all college-student firefighters are in forestry. Many are doing it because it can pay very well 鈥� especially in a busy fire season with overtime. With nowhere to go and nothing to spend it on, it鈥檚 not unusual for summer firefighters to make anywhere from $10,000 to $30,000 for three months work.

Porter Bovee, a friend of Mr. Catino鈥檚 at the university, is studying mechanical and manufacturing engineering, and is in his third summer of firefighting. He鈥檚 working about 100 hours a week, and thinks he will be able to cover tuition for the entire school year. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a fun job,鈥� he says at the end of a long day, 鈥渂ut it really is because of the money.鈥�

Oregon state schools have an advantage over other schools when it comes to fire season. They are on the quarter system, which means they start at the end of September instead of August. Mr. Bovee鈥檚 last day will be Sept. 20, with classes resuming on Sept. 23. But a lot of people are just going to take the term off, he says, because the fire need is so great 鈥� and the earnings are so good. Mr. Catino says he鈥檒l probably work until Oct. 1, then go back to school. He鈥檚 already been in touch with professors about it.

Indeed, the university tries to work with these students, urging professors to be flexible. They help students with course substitutions and even adjust scholarships. But the return to school is still a major concern for agencies and contractors that have to find the labor to fight fires in the fall.

鈥淲e are at max capacity,鈥� says Bryan Wheelock, vice president at Grayback Forestry, a contractor in Medford, Oregon.

Over the years, the company has tried to adjust by screening college-student applicants more carefully about their planned return times, and providing housing to attract more candidates. Mr. Wheelock expects a good chunk of his college students will try to stay longer, but the company is looking to train another 10 to 20 firefighters to replace the students who are leaving.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a scramble to maintain full strength.鈥�

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