This year, it’s hotter and drier across much of the Western United States, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Tall wild grasses that grew in late May are now drying out, said Jim Wimer, fire prevention officer for the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests.
That’s leaving the Inland Northwest vulnerable to wildfires, he said.
“ This is our tipping point,” he said. “If we have a dry June, that leads me to believe that July and August could really start getting busy, and we could start seeing more and more active fires.”
Forest service firefighter training is happening at multiple locations within the forests this week, Wimer said.
He explained how firefighters from different agencies work together to protect the Nez-Perce Clearwater National Forests. They’ll train together on water pumps and specialized firefighting techniques.
A deferred resignation program offered by the federal government allowed workers to resign from their jobs while still getting full pay and benefits through September. That’s left vacancies in the U.S. Forest Service offices in Northern Idaho, Wimer said. Now, federal resources are spread thin.
Forest Service employees with an Incident Qualification Card, also nicknamed a Red Card, often help with jobs behind the scenes — like driving supplies to a fire line. The certificate proves they have what it takes to work on a wildland fire.
“ Whether that's putting signs out, interfacing with people in campgrounds, kind of sharing the information that we have on active fires, we will have less presence, just looking at the numbers,” Wimer said.
Many of the workers who help support firefighters are part-time or seasonal. Thousands of them were fired in the winter as the Trump Administration sought to cut down on federal employees.
Despite fewer support staff, Wimer said their local fire crews are full — but it’s never enough.
“It’s an overall capacity issue we’re dealing with nationally,” Wimer said. “We don’t have enough firefighters when all the fires start.”
Four other agencies work with the U.S. Forest Service to fight wildfires on the Nez-Perce Clearwater National Forests. That includes the Idaho Department of Lands, the Nez Perce Tribe, the Bureau of Land Management and the Clearwater-Potlatch Timber Protective Association.
More houses have been built near the national forests over the past five years, Wimer said, which means agencies have to prioritize protecting homes when the fires hit.
“As I review conditions over my nearly 30-year career, the trend is clear: Longer, hotter, more active fire seasons,” said Kane Steinbruecker, who’s the chief fire warden of C-PTPA.
His organization has had to add staff every year to make sure they’re prepared for fire season, Steinbruecker said.
