Firefighters Leave Harford County To Battle Western US Wildfires

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — Firefighters left Harford County recently to battle wildfires in the western United States. The crew left from the Madonna Ranger Station on July 6, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources reported.

The team that embarked from Harford County consists of three volunteers from local fire companies as well as 17 representatives from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

It was not immediately available which fire companies the firefighters hailed from in the area.

As far as personnel from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources who are heading to fight the fires, eight are Maryland Forest Service firefighters, six are from the Maryland Park Service, two are from the Wildlife and Heritage Service and one is from the Humane Resource Service.

The firefighters will report to Boise, Idaho, where they will learn their assignments from the National Interagency Fire Center there.

There are about 60 wildfires currently burning across the West and Alaska, according to California Patch. More than 2,700 firefighters from California and Oregon were working to contain one major blaze known as the Klamathon fire. On Thursday, California Gov. Jerry Brown declared a State of Emergency in Siskiyou County in northern California due to the destruction caused by the growing Klamathon fire, which resulted in the closure of highways connecting Oregon and California.

According to USA Today, wildfires this year have already torched more than 4,500 square miles — roughly 700 square miles above average for this time of year. And based on current weather forecasts, which predict increasing temperatures due to a dome of high pressure over the West, conditions are not likely to improve anytime soon.

Sending firefighters to assist their counterparts across the nation is not new in Maryland. Since 1974, the Maryland Forest Service has maintained an agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service to have trained wildland firefighters who can deploy if needed.

Photo of the firefighters before deploying July 6 courtesy of Maryland Department of Natural Resources.