Friday, September 17, 2021

2021 wildfire season: NJ Forest Fire Crews continue deployment to Montana

When requested and as conditions in New Jersey allow, every year the New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) deploys engines and crews to other parts of the United States to assist in fighting wildfires. This year is no exception as engines and crewsI wrote on July 28th that engines and crews from the NJFFS were deployed to Montana. NJFFS crews have been deployed to other States, including but not necessarily limited to Minnesota (see my July 26th and September 15 posts). In the intervening weeks I thought but was not certain that NJFFS engines and crews continued to be deployed outside of New Jersey. 

I do my best to keep an eye out for social media and/or news reports on NJFFS deployments outside of New Jersey and I may well miss some reports. Yesterday I came across a social media from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service deployment to Montana. One of the wildfires the NJFFS crews worked was the Nob Hill Fire near Helena Montana. See this article from KTVH, referred to in a September 16th Facebook postost from the NJFFS, for more information. According to KTVH the assistance of the NJFFS as well as assistance from the US Forest Service and other Montana mutual aid meant that this fire was not as bad as might have been without these additional resources.

I am honored by the dedication of the NJFFS and their willingness to be deployed out of state to assist where they are needed.  Thank-you NJFFS crews in Montana, stay safe.


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