The stress of fighting fires can be deadly

One of the most telling images to come out of the wildfires raging across Califronia was the one of several firefighters collapsed in sleep on burned over ground. They were too exhausted even to leave the ground they had defended. They sprawled onto the burned grass and fell asleep in the turnouts.

Across California, 14,000 firefighters are battling 16 major wildfires, including the largest one in the state’s recorded history now called the Mendocino Complex Fire. It takes courage and herculean efforts – sustained sometimes for days at a time – to keep us safe.

Sometimes, firefighters lose their lives protecting us. Tragically, three firefighters have died this fire season – one fighting the Carr fire near Redding and two fighting the Ferguson fire near Yosemite.

Just as deadly are the scars that many carry with them. A recent study highlighted a startling statistic: Last year, more firefighters died by suicide than on duty – 103 compared to 93. This long and destructive wildfire season is taking an increased toll on firefighters and their families, as Adam Ashton and Ryan Lillis of The Sacramento Bee and William Ramirez of the Sierra Star reported.

In 2012, a report showed that firefighters suffered the highest suicide, divorce and heart-attack rates were the highest of any occupation in America. They suffered post-traumatic stress disorder at three times the rate of the national average.

Cal Fire is trying to get out ahead of this potential crisis, as increased stress leads to substance abuse, domestic violence and, too often, taking one’s life.

Director Ken Pimlott is putting more money into support services to help firefighters and their families cope. Counseling is being offered in the field, as well as at fire stations by a Cal Fire unit with seven full-time employees and trained liaisons around the state. Firefighters are being taught to spot post-traumatic stress in each other.

Firefighter unions are also offering similar programs, dispatching peer counselors after suicides and on-duty deaths. The trauma can be deep; it took two days for fellow firefighters to recover the body of Braden Varney after his bulldozer tumbled into a steep canyon in Mariposa County on July 13.

As of Tuesday, with the official fire season just starting, two other firefighters have died. Redding fire inspector Jeremy Stoke was killed July 26 in the Carr Fire. Brian Hughes, captain of the Arrowhead Interagency Hotshot Crew, died July 29 while battling the Ferguson Fire.

No matter your politics, all Californians should agree with Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who paid tribute Tuesday: “We are all immensely grateful to the tens of thousands of firefighters and first responders from California, other states and other countries currently risking their lives and safety to battle wildfires throughout our state,” she said in a statement. “Our firefighters are our nobility, and their courage on the frontlines of these blazes is an act of profound heroism.”

A special joint legislative committee met Tuesday, and is to meet again Thursday, to talk about how to better prepare for wildfires. The panel also is trying to referee a big-money lobbying fight between utilities led by PG&E and insurance companies over who should pay for damages. It’s not small matter. Last year’s record wildfires cost an estimated $10 billion. This year’s damages will likely break that awful record.

There are so many tragedies born of fire: 66 people died last year; 6,000 families lost their homes, thousands of businesses were burned out. With these thousands of California victims we must also recognize that firefighters are suffering, too.

This story was originally published August 8, 2018 at 2:31 PM with the headline "The stress of fighting fires can be deadly."