Virginia Sends First Crew To Fight Wildland Fires In The West

Fourteen wildland firefighters from the Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF) will fly to Boise, Id., on Sunday as part of a 14-day federal assignment to assist in suppression of wildland fires in the western United States. The crew will depart from Asheville, N.C.

Members of the crew hail from eight counties (Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, Botetourt, Carroll, Chesterfield, Orange and Page) across the Commonwealth and represent both full- and part-time VDOF employees.

“The crew will receive its assignment upon arrival in Boise,” said John Miller, VDOF director of resource protection. “They will use various hand tools to construct fire lines that are needed to stop the spread of the many fires burning out west.”

More VDOF crews are likely to be called to assist the US Forest Service over the next several weeks.

“We’re working on developing additional crews right now,” Miller said. “With much of Virginia facing drought-like conditions, we have to balance the need for protection in the Commonwealth with the demands for help out West. Our first priority is the safety of Virginia’s citizens, and we’ll ensure that there is sufficient coverage in state before we agree to send staff out of state.”

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The Virginia Department of Forestry protects and develops healthy, sustainable forest resources for Virginians. Headquartered in Charlottesville, there are Forestry staff members assigned to every county to provide service to citizens of the Commonwealth. VDOF is an equal opportunity provider.

With nearly 16 million acres of forest land and more than 184,000 Virginians employed in forestry, forest products and related industries, Virginia forests provide more than $29 Billion annually in benefits to the Commonwealth.