Volunteer fire departments answering wildfire calls

With fire season at its peak right now, there is a group of men and women who volunteer their time to make sure we're safe from wildfires.

They make up the 13 volunteer fire departments in Lewis and Clark County. The first three to respond in almost every situation, the West Valley Fire Department, East Valley and Tri-Lakes. They each have what's called a Mutual Aid Run Card, so when a fire is called in, they are the first departments called to an emergency. East Valley Fire Chief Dave Sammons says the experience level of each firefighter increases with each situation, continued education and training.

"It's not just something that you can just jump into and not expect to get hurt. There's a lot of equipment involved, personal protection equipment that we deploy so that between that and the training and good leadership, we hope to keep everyone safe,” says Chief Sammons.

Chief Sammons adds that each firefighter has a regular job and family and that out of 33 total volunteers an average of 20 firefighters will respond to a call.

Story by Jess Armstrong, Beartooth NBC.
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