Aiexpress – Nearly 150 firefighters from Washington are en route to Southern California to provide critical assistance as the region battles devastating wildfires. The state is sending 45 engines and 11 trucks to support the overwhelmed fire crews in California.
The Washington Emergency Management Division confirmed that firefighters from across the state began mobilizing on Wednesday, with crews from Snohomish County to the Canadian border quickly responding to the urgent request for help.
“It was a quick turnaround. Once the call was made, everyone scrambled. The resource leaders filtered down to get the boots on the street down there,” said Battalion Chief Justyn Shevlin of Snohomish Regional Fire & Rescue.
Shevlin spoke with KIRO 7, noting that nine fire departments from Snohomish, Island, Skagit, and Whatcom Counties had joined forces to form two strike teams for the mission. The convoy made its first stop in Salem, Oregon, before heading to Los Angeles.
“All personnel heading down are wildland certified, red card certified, and specifically trained to meet the challenging conditions of wildland firefighting,” Shevlin explained.
The firefighters are preparing to face conditions unlike those typically encountered in Washington. Shevlin detailed that wildland firefighting involves different apparatus, specialized tools, and techniques, including navigating varied weather patterns and topographies unique to the region.
In addition to providing support to exhausted California crews, Washington firefighters will assist with extinguishing flames and using their engines to protect threatened structures. Crews will work long 12-hour shifts or as needed by resource managers on the ground.
“Our team will not impact response times back home,” Shevlin assured, emphasizing that despite the deployment, local services remain unaffected. “We have 200 firefighters in our organization, and we’re sending only five. Our daily staffing levels have remained the same.”
The list of fire departments sending crews to Southern California includes:
- Snohomish Regional Fire and Rescue
- North County Fire
- South County Fire
- Sky Valley
- Snoho Fire Districts 16, 4, 22, 15
- Camano Island Fire & Rescue
- Eastside Fire & Rescue
- Chelan Fire & Rescue
- Key Peninsula Fire
- Gig Harbor Fire & Medic One
- Shoreline Fire
- North Mason Regional Fire
These dedicated firefighters will be working tirelessly to help alleviate the strain on local fire services as California fights to contain the wildfires.
