2009 CAL Fire Riverside County Multi-Agency Wildland Drill

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Fire Departments Train Together for Wildfire Response

Prior to wildfire season several California fire agencies trained together on joint response. Because of mutual aid agreements in California, units from a number of different agencies - and possibly different states - may work together on a wildland fire. The training exercise provided a non-stressful environment for  the companies to learn to work together.

"We get a chance to get out here, meet each other work together. The municipalities get to see how we do things. We get to see how they do things, and it's a huge benefit to all of us," says John Gonzales, a Fire Captain with CAL FIRE/Riverside County.

Areas of Training

The drills allowed firefighters to get out into the field and do live fire operations, structure triage operations, hand tool training, and hose-lay training. Chief Mike Jennings of the Murrieta Fire Department said that the training prepares the crews to meet the challenges of any wildland fire, anywhere in the nation, and offers training for new strike team leaders.

"Each group here represents what would be a strike team assigned to a particular section or area of the fire; and they would be given specific orders to work the fire, whether it would be a back burn, or be overhaul, or mopping on a fire," says Fernando Herrera, Fire Captain of the Public Affairs Department for CAL FIRE/Riverside County.

The crews were also taught fire safety, how to follow orders, and how to stay in constant  communication, while watching their surroundings. The training allowed firefighters to practice what they already know.

Firefighters Training with Law Enforcement

Local law enforcement personnel were on hand to practice an interoperability exercise with different communications equipment. "The intent of our exercise today is to identify communications networks when law enforcement and fire personnel come together, and the capacity of either unified command or communication branches within and incident," says Chet Ashbaugh, the Communications Manager for CAL FIRE/Riverside County.

This annual training exercise is put together by the Riverside County Fire Chief's Association, the Riverside County Training Officer's Association, and the Regional Training Program.  The groups offer other courses to firefighters throughout the year.

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