New wildland fire crew takes oath of office in Enterprise city council meeting

ENTERPRISE — In front of a small crowd of family members and community residents, five specially trained and seasoned firemen were sworn in on April 13 as the newest members of the wildland division of the Enterprise Fire Department. 

Wildland firefighters are sworn in by Mayor Pro Tempore Jared Bollinger of Enterprise, Utah, April 13, 2022 | Photo by Ammon Teare, St. George News

The ceremony was conducted during the regular city council meeting and led by Councilmember (and Mayor Pro Tempore) Jared Bollinger, who began by recognizing all the contributions made by the city’s fire and EMS personnel.

“When there’s an emergency in the community, firefighters are one of the first on scene,” Bollinger said. “They are here to prevent human suffering and death, to stabilize an incident and prevent damages and loss of properties. So tonight it’s our great opportunity to swear these young men in as firefighters with our wildland crew.”

Enterprise is no stranger to wildfire and its dangers. Just last year the Flatt Fire scorched more than 14,000 acres of land along the Washington-Iron County border and burned all the way to the city limits.

As the largest Utah wildfire in 2021, the response drew resources from numerous federal, state and local agencies, including more than 200 personnel and 20 engines.

Scene of a wildfire burning near the town of Enterprise, Utah, June 18, 2021 | File photo by Kaden Foremaster, St. George News

It was fortunate timing, then, that the city recently had started its own wildland fire division within the existing fire department. Deputy Chief Jeff Germain said he was brought in to help organize the new division, finding there was no shortage of need once the first crew was formed.

“Previously, they had a regular structure fire team that would go out on wildfires until another resource arrived, and then they would leave,” Germain said. “We’ve created a team that can stay on site and still fight that fire. And they can go outside the area to wherever they need us and bring income back to the city, which helps the taxpayer at the end of the day.”

Last year’s wildland fire crew traveled to California, Washington and even British Columbia to help wherever there was a pressing need, reaping the rewards of higher pay for crew members and earning money for their home community through state and federal emergency funding.

One of the newly inducted crew members, Engine Boss Hunter Staley, said the prospect of helping with more fires in other counties and states contributed to his decision to join the new wildland division, though he added that his priority will still be serving the local area.

New members of the Enterprise Wildland Fire Division stand outside their station with a fire truck purchased with funds secured by responding to out-of-state fires, Enterprise, Utah, April 13, 2022 | Photo by Ammon Teare, St. George News

“This will be my seventh season,” Staley said. “I did a couple years on the Utah side of the BLM, and then a couple years on the Arizona Strip side. I’ve lived in St. George my whole life, but all the guys here (in Enterprise) are great and I’m excited to be a part of this new agency. Plus I love small towns and the weather’s better up here in the summer.”

Besides Staley, several of the other men that joined the new crew bring years of experience with firefighting for the Bureau of Land Management, and one had previously worked for the U.S. Forest Service.

As opposed to their structure fire counterparts, wildland fire crews are trained, certified and equipped to best respond to the unique challenges of wildfires.

There will be a backup crew that will stay in the area if the new crew is called out to a distant fire, with some members returning from last year’s squad. When there’s no fire to fight locally or abroad, the wildland division will be busy doing preventative work in the region: clearing dead trees, carrying out controlled burns and building fire breaks, Germain said. 

“We spent hundreds of hours putting this new crew together,” Germain said. “We chose this crew because of their abilities, background and experience. We’ve got squad bosses, EMTs and engine bosses among our new staff. We’ve got some great guys and we’re looking forward to a good season with a good crew.”

As for how the public can help support firefighters and make the upcoming fire season a little less dangerous, Germain had a simple message:

“Put campfires out. Dead out.”

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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