For the first time ever, Type II firefighting crews from Alberta are working on out of province fires. Two eight-man crews – one from High Prairie and one from Wabasca – were on the fire line near Caramat, Ontario last week. Joining them in various roles were 16 permanent staff from Alberta’s Forest Protection Division.
The Type II crews are the grunt work guys who camp in the bush and put out the fire at its perimeter. They work with the axes, the shovels and the hoses to make sure a fire that is ‘being held’ turns into a fire that is under control.
According to Liaison Officer Darren Frederick of Lac la Biche, at an Alberta fire the Type II crews would bunk at a base camp and go out every day to the fire line. At the Wawa fires (Wawa 13 – 28,000 hectares and Wawa 23 – 800 hectares) they have their own tents and move camp as they work along the line. They are resupplied regularly by air or ground, but they only get out “every three to six days to wash up.”
Also on the job at Caramat is Marten Hills District Forest Protection Officer John Brewer. He says until recently it has been a very dry spring in northern Ontario. The call for help from Alberta came a couple of weeks ago, and on or around June 26 Alberta responded. Brewer is looking after air operations for the Wawa fires (so named not because of their proximity to the worst hitchhiking hellhole in Canada, but because Wawa is home to the HQ of that fire district – the fires are actually much closer to Geraldton) and former Slave Lake area forest officers Doug Smith and Morgan Kehr have leadership roles as well. The other Slave Lake officer on the job is Barry Shellian. Brewer says the weather has been cooler and wetter since the Albertans arrived, leading to many jokes about them bringing the weather with them. They might have, but they certainly left plenty behind in what has been a damp and cool summer so far without much for Alberta firefighters to do.
The Wawa fires have threatened the hamlet of Caramat (population about 100), and CN Rail property along the rail line. Caramat was evacuated at one point, but all was calm as of last Thursday with both fires showing no signs of growth.
“We expect to be home at the end of next week,” says Brewer.
The Type II fire crew members are: (from High Prairie) Gordon Thunder, Shawn Belcourt, Herman Giroux, Adrian Laboucan, Adam Thunder, Darrel Giroux, Brian Giroux and Bruce Giroux; (from Wabasca) Sheldon Houle, Calvin Yellowknee, Ian Cardinal, Raymond Young, Clarence Gladue, Peter Cardinal, Henry Cardinal and Norris Alook.

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