Fire protection agencies in southern Oregon gear up for wildfire school

WHITE CITY, Ore. — Fire protection agencies across southwest Oregon will host a wildfire school this weekend.

The annual event is held every year in preparation for the fire season. The hope is to improve interagency coordination and ensure safety for both the firefighters and the public. This year, exercises will also cover how firefighters can remain safe during the pandemic while on the front lines of a fire.

“Whether you’re structural or whether you’re wildland you’ll be sharing the fire ground when you’re responding to a new fire, so rolling it into our training is really vital for this year,” Oregon Department of Forestry Southwest District PIO, Brian Ballou said.

The biggest difference this year is the training will be conducted without a live fire.