The Smoke Jumpers were brave young men who would parachute into remote forest fires. They would run ahead of the fire, carrying heavy packs, shovels and axes, and fight the flames with whatever means available. This often meant dropping trees and clearing brush to remove fuel from the fire. Founded in 1939, they didn’t have any of our modern technology, and had to carry their food and water and everything else on their backs as they worked, sometimes for days without support.
In 1949, a crew of 15 Smoke Jumpers were dropped into Mann Gulch in Montana. The fire was a towering one, and prevailing winds changed, turning the fire directly toward the crew. They were quickly backed up against the walls of Mann Gulch, trapped between a 3-storey fire and a 70-degree cliff at their backs. At the last possible minute, they turned and ran up the cliff in a sprint to survive.
13 didn’t make it.
Investigators later found that the Smoke Jumpers who died didn’t remove their packs; they tried to run – nearly climb – uphill while carrying their shovels, picks, axes and gear.
One survivor – the foreman, X, made it through by lighting an ‘escape fire’ that he’d read about in a book about the Cherokee. He lit a patch of grass around him on fire, then lay down in the ash while the flames roared over and around him. He nearly suffocated as the fire drew all of the oxygen out of the air, but he made it.
The lessons from the Smoke Jumpers are many. Wildlands firefighters in the Western States are now taught to drop their packs and run; how to use ‘escape fires’ in the worst situations; and also tested for fitness.
Today, we remember the sacrifice of the Smoke Jumpers and all firefighters everywhere by performing the Wildlands Firefighter Test together.
This test is simple, but hard:
Pack Test (Arduous Duty): Complete a 3-mile walk over level terrain in 45 minutes or less while carrying a 45-pound pack.
Field Test (Moderate Duty): Complete a 2-mile walk over level terrain in 30 minutes or less while carrying a 25-pound pack.
Walk Test (Light Duty): Complete a 1-mile walk over level terrain in 16 minutes or less (no pack carrying requirement).
https://www.doi.gov/wildlandfire/qualifications-and-pack-test
Choose the level you are most likely to complete successfully, and meet at the gym with a backpack. We’ll load you up appropriately, give you the course and send you off.
