Private contract fire equipment

[Aaronw]

On call type 2 hand crews are frequently sponsored by Federal agencies. While organized by the agency, technically all the crew members are independant contractors. The use of these crews can trace their beginnings to the early days where Forest Rangers would often hire directly from mining and logging camps or last ditch the local bars and saloons. These days most of the crew members come from colleges, indian reservations and agricultural workers, crews are now established before the fire season, not after a fire breaks out.

 

As these crews are not a standing resource they often do not have assigned transportation. An entire contract industry has formed around transporting these crews, many using retired school buses. The crews and buses usually are not related.

 

The agency crew bosses that accompany these crews have their hands full with paperwork often having to juggle the contract paperwork of the 18-20 individual crew members, the 4-6 chainsaws which may each have a contract and the bus in addition to keeping the crew safe and effective on the fireline.

 

This one is operated Big Sky Busing Inc of Montana.