Thunderbirds firefighters tackle any emergency

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The very busy 20-member Thunderbirds firefighting team is the only sustained action crew in the Port Alberni area, meaning they can fight most fires from start to finish, and they have the ability to break into smaller initial attack crews for greater maneuverability in fighting multiple small fires.

When a fire is reported, the forest centre dispatcher will send in a three-person initial attack crew. If the fire cannot be contained, the full Thunderbirds sustained attack crew is sent in, carrying 19 days' worth of gear, and supplies for 24 hours as they work to extinguish the blaze.

The Thunderbirds, which started as an all-Native firefighting crew from Tseshaht and Hupacasath nations, was eventually taken over by governmental control but still maintains a strong core (50 per cent) of First Nations team members.

First Nation team members Jason Charleson, Shane Hunt, Darrell Dick, Paul Amos, Alex Antoine, Jan Martin, Ian Hackett, Mike Werstuik, John Swift and Derek Neuwirth say the crew works well together.

"It started from the days when this was an all Native crew, but at fire camps we seem to be much more bonded as a unit than other crews" said crew supervisor Neuwirth, who is enjoying his first year in a supervisory position after seven years on the team. "It's one big family, and we try to make sure everyone gets as much education and experience as possible," he said.

Because of forest firefighter protocols across Canada, the Thunderbirds have been called in to help out at forest fires across the country for five of the past six years, travelling as far away as Quebec.

Last year, the crew worked for 70 days on various fire lines around the province, and has already been called to one fire this year along the Alberni Inlet when the Boy Scout cabin burned down, threatening the surrounding forests.

The Thunderbird unit operates from June until September out of a facility they built for themselves out at the Alberni Airport.

In between fires, the crew works at a variety of "cost-recovery projects" such as tree felling, clearing recreation sites, and building helipad sites. The crew works with the Provincial Emergency Program and will often fight fires on private as well as public lands.

People wanting to become Thunderbirds need to be physically fit, have a driver's licence, some first aid training, and have their application in to the Ministry of Forests by New Year's Day.

"You get to travel all around the province and travel in various types of helicopters and aircraft," said Neuwirth.

"You have to give up your summer. It's a big commitment but it's rewarding," he said.

Base Manager Bob Pfannenschmidt has supervised and trained the Thunderbirds since the beginning and takes great pride in the crew.

Pfannenschmidt was able to use the recent Boy Scout cabin fire near Coulson's Mill as a training opportunity.

"We pulled saltwater out of the inlet and onto the fire through a pump and were able to contain the fire to the actual structure."

The crew learned how to assess the fire, spot dangerous trees, develop a strategy, report to the fire centre, and complete all the required paperwork after a fire. "It was a good training fire," said Pfannenschmidt.

The Thunderbirds operate under the command of the Coastal Fire Centre in Errington, which is one of six fire centres operated by the B.C. Forest Service's Protection Program.