I grew up in the northwest and have been surrounded by news
and stories of wild land firefighting most of my life. While working for many
years at the airport I distinctly remember the smoky smell of the back packs I
rummaged through while working for TSA. I do not have any direct exposure to
wild land fires though. Since moving to Nebraska and becoming a corrections
officer I have been exposed to a different part of the firefighting scene. I
work for Wyoming Department of Corrections and they are one of the few states
which utilize inmates to fight fires. Arizona, California, Colorado, Montana,
Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming all have inmate firefighting programs with California’s
being the largest (Hay.) While working in the prison where we diligently seek
out weapons and drugs it was an odd thought that we were shipping some of these
inmates out to a “camp” with almost no fence, then sending them out into
society with chainsaws, axes, and shovels. After a few years at the prison I
have had time to talk with many inmates who have served on the fire crews over
their time in prison. Though most inmates make less than $1 an hour, they love
the program.
(Pictures by Wyoming
Department of Corrections)
These inmates spend most of the summer months fighting fires
but that does not mean that they get the rest of the time off. In Wyoming in
2011 these crews were called on the assist with placement of sandbags to help
prevent flooding (Richards.) I find this program to be a good way for minimum
security inmates to be able to give back to their communities while serving out
their sentences.
After moving to what is referred to as “Wyobraska” I have a
much larger respect for what wind can contribute to fire spread. It is always
windy here. No, not breezy, windy. And the gusts here are much stronger
consistently than I was used to in the Northwest. The rangelands here are often
very dry through the summer providing dry sagebrush and grassland which are
prime fuels for a quickly spreading fire. A fire near Casper Wyoming in 2014 spread
rapidly out of control due to 60 mile an hour wind gusts engulfing 10,000 acres
of grassland and causing 1000 residents to be evacuated (Zuckerman.)
With Wyoming’s limited population (under 600,000 for the whole
state) the contribution to community assistance which this inmate program can
offer does appear to be making a difference.
References
"Department Of Corrections". Corrections.wy.gov.
Web. 3 Apr. 2016.
Gabbert, Bill. "Station Fire Burns Homes And At Least
7,000 Acres Near Casper, Wyoming". Wildfire Today. N.p., 2015. Web. 3 Apr.
2016.
Hay, Mark. "Felons, Flames, And The New Debate Over
Prison Labor". GOOD Magazine. N.p., 2015. Web. 3 Apr. 2016.
Richards, Amy. "Wyoming Inmates Assist With Flood
Relief". KGAB 650AM. N.p., 2014. Web. 3 Apr. 2016.
Zuckerman, Laura. "Hundreds Allowed To Return Home
After Fleeing Wyoming Wildfire". Reuters. N.p., 2015. Web. 3 Apr. 2016.
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