FAQ
Career Information Center | Fitness | Experience | Training | Career Opportunities | Communities | FAQ | Job Description | Job Application
Table of Contents- What does Firestorm Do?
- What kind of pay does firestorm offer?
- What kind of benefits are available.
- What training is available?
- Do I need to have previous training?
- What kind of work do you do on a hand crew?
- What equipment do I need to be on a fire crew?
- What are the best boots to get?
- What do I have to do to get prepared?
- What does project work consist of?
- Where does Firestorm work?
- What kind of equipment do you have to have?
- Do you provide housing?
- Do you work full time or call when needed?
- Are you guys like CDF, Forest Service, BLM?
- How long is the fire season and how long do you work?
- When would I have to be prepared to start?
- Do you hire students who plan on going back to school in August or September?
Answers
What does Firestorm Do?
Firestorm does many things, so we will summarize the main areas of our operation.
Firestorm is a emergency service and forestry management company that performs contracts for the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), The Department of Interiors National Park Service, private land and home owners as well as local governments.
Firestorm has several different departments that perform these different operations for the various agencies. Firestorm’s fire department provides 20-person hand crews and fire Engines to the US Forest Service as well as the National Park Service. The hand crews and engines perform the same tasks on Wildland fires as those of the Federal agency’s.
The fuels management department utilizes the fire crews to perform hazardous fuels reduction work for homeowners. Government service contracts that require hand thinning, prescribed burning and handline construction are also performed by the engine and hand crews. Firestorm also performs biomass removal, mastication, grapple pilling and other forms of mechanical fuels treatment.
Firestorm also assists various local government programs such as the fire safe councils in performing fuels reduction. We also provide agency and private landowners consultation regarding fire hazard reduction, project layout and project implementation.
In summary, if there is a project to be done in the forests we will do it.
What kind of pay does firestorm offer?
Firestorms pay varies depending on several factors and your capacity in the organization. Our pay on the fire crews is comparable of that of the Federal agencies and varies depending on experience. However, rates paid on our projects are determined by the department of labor and are now starting at $ 14.97 per hour. When our fire crews are not on project they are working on various projects, some of which are government service contracts that pay the $14.97 per hour.
What kind of benefits are available?
For all employees whom have been with Firestorm for more than 12 months of continuous service will become eligible for health benefits, 401K and paid time off.
What training is available?
We provide all our candidates and employees with the necessary training to become a Wildland firefighter. We provide training ranging from the basic 40-hour class for first time firefighters to crew boss, prescribed burn boss, division supervisor training. We also provide medical first responder training as well as Leadership and prescribed burning training.
All training is conducted and supervised by instructors certified from the California State Fire Marshals Office.
All of our training is transferable to all the various agencies and meets all of the National Wildfire Coordination Group (NWCG) guidelines.
Firestorm will require the signing of an employment agreement if you plan on taking our training.
Do I need to have previous training?
Prior training is a good advantage, however it is not necessary. Firestorm will provide you with all the training that you need to become a Wildland firefighter.
What kind of work do you do on a hand crew?
Our hand crews and engines perform many tasks. While on fires the crews perform handline construction, mop-up, burn out preparation. Our crews perform the same tasks as any agency crew. When not on fires the crews perform project work. Our project work consists of hand thinning and piling, handline construction for burn preparations, chipping, and other forms of fuel reduction work. After fire season our hand crews perform thousands of acres of clear-cut burning, pile burning and under burning.
What equipment do I need to be on a fire crew?
Firestorm will provide all of you firefighting gear and personal protective equipment (PPE). This includes:
- Helmet
- nomex pants
- nomex shirt
- gloves
- safety glasses
- head lamp
- line gear
- personal gear bag
You need to provide:
- Boots with the following minimum standard (8 inches tall, Vibram Soles and without a steel toe.)
- You also need to provide a quality sleeping bag, I suggest at least a 20 degree bag. You need a quality tent such as a North Face, MSR, Mountain hard ware, sierra design. A small camp stove is also convenient but not required.
While on project we typically camp out near the projects for 5 days a week. Temperatures have ranged from –4 degrees to 120 degrees, so it is imperative that you have quality camping gear.
What are the best boots to get?
Everyone has their personal preference when it comes to boots. My suggestion is to try the following brands. Whites, Nicks, Westco, or Danners. I personally like Whites and haven’t had any problems. Nicks and Whites are fully re-buildable, so at the end of fires season you can send them back to the manufacturer and they will replace the soles and if necessary the leather uppers for about half the price of the new price.
You should look at spending between $250 - $350 dollars for your boots, it is worth the investment.
What do I have to do to get prepared?
Fighting fire and performing our project work will be the toughest job, Physically and mentally, that you will ever do. The best thing you can do to get prepared to work on a hand crew is to start hiking, running, and lifting weights. You should be able to run at least 4-5 miles at 8 min. miles, and be capable of hiking up hill for miles with at least 25 pounds of gear. You should also be able to do push-up, pull-ups and sit-ups.
Without actually doing the job its tough to be completely prepared, but if you are in excellent physical condition, it will make the job much more bearable.
You need to be mentally prepared to work very long hours in very harsh conditions. Most individuals can become physically capable of doing the job, but lack the mental fortitude to handle the rough conditions and fatigue.
What does project work consist of?
Our project work consists of the following types of fuels treatment:
- Chainsaw thinning and piling
- Chainsaw thinning
- Handline construction
- Fuel break construction
- Pile burning
- Clear-cut burning
- Under story burning
- Fire hazard reduction around homes
Where does Firestorm work?
The majority of our work is performed in Northern California, on the Plumas, Lassen and Shasta-Trinity national forests. However, we have performed projects from Santa Barbara to the Oregon border. We also perform a lot of work on the Whiskeytown, Yosemite and Sequoia-Kings National Parks.
While under contract with the federal government we have worked in all the western states.
What kind of equipment do you have to have?
Our equipment is comparable to that of the hot shot and other agency crews. Our hand crews all have crew buggies that are made by Phenix Manufacturing in Los Angeles, these buggies are the same as those used by the Forest Service.
Our crews are equipped with 2 crew buggies and 1 superintendent truck. We use Husvarna chainsaws and each crew carries between 8 and 12 saws. Our line gear is custom made from Ruffian gear out of San Bernardino.
Do you provide housing?
We don’t provide housing, however, we can assist in finding a place for people coming from out of state to live. We can also put you in contact with other people on the crews if you are interested in finding a place with some other folks.
It should also be noted that even on a slow fire season we are away from our stations for 5 days at a time during the week. You will most likely be in town a total of 4-6 days a month. On a busy fire season you can plan on being away from home all but 2 days a month.
Do you work full time or call when needed?
During our availability period (May-Oct) we work full time whether its on fires or project.
We like to have our crews up and available by April 1st and will work through the prescribed burn season (Nov-Dec) or until we get snowed out.
I tell my crews to plan on working from April to December. We also have work available for those who want to work the remainder of the year.
Are you guys like CDF, Forest Service, BLM?
All agencies have their differences and similarities. There are a few major differences that make us unique.
- Flexibility: We are not a large bureaucracy so we can be more flexible not only with our operations, but with our personnel.
- Projects: Our fire crews perform a lot of the same work as the other agencies, but the volume that we complete every year is much greater. Every year our crews complete about 500-800 acres of hand thinning and about 3,000 acres of prescribed burning each year.
- Prescribed Burning: Unlike any government agencies we still perform clear-cut burning for the major logging companies. We also perform thousands of acres of under burning.
- Travel: We do travel throughout the western U.S. and are available to go anywhere in the U.S. This is no different than the federal agency crews.
The major difference with our crews is that we aren’t stuck having to work out of the same station all summer. Our crews spend time in Yosemite, Sequoia – Kings National Parks, on the Plumas, Lassen, Shasta-Trinity National Forests and many other areas throughout California and Nevada.
How long is the fire season and how long do you work?
Fire season in California typically begins in June and usually ends in October. We typically run our crews from April 1st through December 1st or until it snows.
When would I have to be prepared to start?
You will need to plan on taking either the 40-hour training or critical refresher training pending your previous history. These classes will take place starting in Jan and will continue through April. Plan on allowing enough time to take the classes and get your personnel effects in order.
Do you hire students who plan on going back to school in August or September?
We typically only hire one student per crew, however, we are willing to make exceptions so feel free to submit an application.