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Training & Workshops 

An important part of increasing prescribed fire capacity is training a local workforce. The Siskiyou PBA provides training opportunities and workshops that are open to the public. The Siskiyou PBA has offered training to 114 individuals. Here are some past trainings we have hosted: 

Basic Wildland Firefighter Training: February 2022 

The Siskiyou PBA hosted a fire training where they brought in trainers from Ecological Fire Solutions and Torchbearr to teach the National Wildfire Coordinating Group's standardized S-130 and S-190 classes, which are introductory firefighting courses. The Siskiyou PBA focused the courses on prescribed fire operations. Participants from throughout Siskiyou County attended as well as others from around Northern California.

Fire-lighters in training observe fire behavior in piles of straw
Participants from the S-130/190 Basic Fire Training observe different kinds of fire behavior demonstrated in burning piles of straw. The partipants also conducted a small prescribed burn as part of the training, burning blackberry patches in a pasture at Skyelark Ranch in Edgewood. The burn increased the forage space for the livestock on the ranch by eradicating the blackberries.
This training was co-sponsored by the University of California Cooperative Extension through a CAL FIRE Fire Preventiongrant focused on capacity building within California PBAs.
University of California Cooperative Extension Logo
Prescribed Burn Prep Work Party: March 22, 2021 

The Siskiyou PBA hosted a workshop with the Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture to instruct volunteers on handline construction and put their new skills to work installing handline that was later ustilized in a 15-acre prescribed burn in April 2021

Firelighters dig handline in a pine forest
Volunteers dug handline at the Blackbutte Center for Railroad Culture in Weed, CA in March 2021 in preparation for the prescribed burn that occured the next month. 
Prescribed Fire Training: March 6-7, 2021 

The Siskiyou PBA partnered with the Watershed Research and Training Center, Scott Valley Fire Department, and Etna Fire Department to plan and conduct a community-based prescribed fire training workshop in Etna over the weekend of March 6 and 7, 2021. On the first day, the participants were broken into four groups and rotated among different training stations. Two of the stations covered basic firing operations such as setting up and using a drip torch and different burn patterns. The other two stations oriented participants to basic holding operations and to different kinds of fire engines and other water delivery systems. The second day culminated in a mock burn scenario where everyone was assigned a position on the burn, participated in a briefing and carried out part of a burn operation but without live fire on the ground.

Firefighter teaches volunteer how to operate a fire hose
Scott Valley Fire Cihef, Paul Buchter, instructed participants on fire engine and hose operations in March 2021. It snowed the night before the training so we were unable to have a live-training but adapted to the weather and still provided valuable training opporutnities to the community members who participated.
Klamath TREX 

The Klamath Prescribed Fire Training Exchange (TREX) builds key capacity to reintroduce fire, bringing people together from a diversity of backgrounds, and bridging jurisdictions to manage fire more effectively. The Siskiyou PBA supports these programs by helping coordinate the programs, participating in burns, and providing training for participants.

Three women in fire clothing, yellow long sleeve shirts, green pants, and yellow hard hats. All of them are smiling and holding tools and drip torches.