RIVER COMPLEX, CALIF. — A crew of 20 Maine forest rangers and municipal firefighters, including two from Knox County, flew west this week to help battle a series of wildfires in northern California. They have joined other crews of similar size in an area near Mount Shasta where flames are consuming forest, and where the small towns of Denny, Dailey and Hoboken have been evacuated.

Robert Polky, 22, of St. George, and Hunter Schade, 19, of Rockport, have joined the Maine crew, which boarded a chartered jet in Manchester, N.H., on Tuesday and went to work clearing vegetation and defending homes and other buildings.

This is not the first time Polky and Schade have volunteered to fight wildfires in the tinder-dry western states; this is the second trip for Schade and the third for Polky. They, like other Maine firefighters and forest rangers, are part of a national mutual aid system that kicks in when fires threaten lives and property, and a call for help is made.

“This crew call-up came as part of a national call for resources to California,” said Maine Forest Ranger Jeff Currier, who is the organizer of Maine’s mutual aid response to wildfires in other states.

California has been in a drought for the past four years and Gov. Jerry Brown has described the state as a tinderbox, according to the New York Times, Aug. 5.

“Maine and other states help in wildfire emergencies,” said Currier. “We do it through compacts, anticipating that should we have a need arise, those states would send us assistance.”

The Maine crew has been assigned to the River Complex, which now comprises 11,000 acres of burning woods. The fires began there the last week of July when the area received 440 lightning strikes in three days, resulting in more than 60 fires. The fires have since merged, the two largest — called the Happy Fire and Grove Fire — are burning more than 4,000 acres each. Other fires are smaller: Daily Fire at 16 acres, Look Fire at 7 acres, and Smokey Fire at 1 acre.

Maine forest rangers — 19 men and one woman — have joined three other crews, each comprising 20 rangers and firefighters, from different states. They are in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest and the Six Rivers National Forest where temperatures were on Aug. 6 in the mid-80s and low 90s, and winds are out of the west, at 5-10 miles per hour, gusting to 15.

Local law enforcement and firefighters are continuously on duty, trying to suppress five fires, with help from Packers — strings of mules and their handlers that assist the firefighters. At the River Complex, 11 mules and one horse part of the Packers team working in the roadless areas.

Now, heavy smoke has filled the region, closing roads. Residents are being evacuated.

The website Inciweb.org posts constant updates to the firefighting situtations throughout the states. 

Both the Rockport and St. George fire chiefs agree that the experience that Schade and Polky are getting is invaluable.

“It’s an opportunity for the young firefighters because it gives them the chance to see big fire, and work with an incident command center,” said St. George Fire Chief Timothy Polky, who himself volunteered to fight wildfires in Montana 10 years ago. 

“They are getting first-hand exposure to harsh and dangerous conditions,” said Polky. “You see big fire — flames 100 to 150 feet high.”

Rockport Fire Chief Jason Peasley is likewise appreciative of Hunter Schade’s efforts.

“It’s great to see young kids to expand their skills, and this is a good opportunity to get experience and knowledge,” he said. 

Currier said the Maine crew signs on for 14 days of firefighting and two days of travel. The days are long, 14 to 16 hours of working on fires in significant terrain.

“When they return they are much more seasoned,” he said. “They have gotten experience they might not normally get, plus they give assistance where it is needed.”

This is the first crew heading west this season, he said. The Forest Service gauges the call for help against what the state of Maine is experiencing with its own fire hazards.

“We are comfortable that we can send resources from Maine and we won’t jeopardize the state,” he said. 

The crews consist of three to four Maine rangers, with the rest being firefighters. They are from all over the state, from Aroostook and Washington counties, down to York County.

“They are all highly trained and well-equipped,” he said.

Maine has a pool of 50 to 60 such firefighters. The firefighters earn $17 to $19 an hour while on duty, said Currier.

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657.