Highly skilled firefighters are the last line of defense against wildfires, but that line is fraying because the government decided long ago that they’re not worth very much.

…

But at exactly the time when the country needs wildland firefighters more than ever, the federal government is losing them. In the past three years, according to the Forest Service’s own assessments, it has suffered an attrition rate of 45% among its permanent employees. Many people inside and outside the fire service believe this represents one of the worst crises in its history. Last spring, as the 2023 fire season was getting started, I asked Grant Beebe, a former smokejumper who now heads the Bureau of Land Management’s fire program, if there had been an exodus of wildland firefighters. He initially hesitated. “‘Exodus’ is a pretty strong word,” he said. But then he reconsidered. “I’ll say yeah. Yeah.”

  • QuarterSwede@lemmy.world
    0·
    6 months ago

    It’s super dangerous, extremely physical work for long periods, and they get paid next to nothing. I can’t see why anyone wouldn’t want to join up! /s

    • girlfreddy@lemmy.ca
      0·
      6 months ago

      Plus if you’re injured on the job there’s 5000 hoops to jump through … so many don’t even bother claiming, they just quit.

    • Cosmonauticus@lemmy.world
      0·
      6 months ago

      I actually don’t have an issue with this for most offenders. Saving lives and property for a shortened sentence makes sense. The problem is they aren’t immediately pipelined into firefighter/emergency jobs afterwards so they continue to be a positive member of society is a problem

  • 3volver@lemmy.world
    0·
    6 months ago

    The first line of defense is… get this… don’t fucking build housing in a wildfire prone area.

    • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
      0·
      6 months ago

      Most of America is prone to wildfires in the right conditions. So unless you expect a mass exodus, I think there’s not much of another option.