Silver City, NM, August 21, 2018— The Gila National Forest is seeking a small group of career-focused women to be on-call Wildland Firefighters for the 2019 fire season. These on-call positions will provide support to wildland fire operations over the summer, and can help pave the way for future employment and career advancement with the Forest Service.

Approximately 20-30 applicants will be selected. Their first assignment will be to attend the Women in Wildland Fire Boot Camp in October, which provides comprehensive firefighter training and orientation. Those who successfully complete the training will be prepared for the Work Capacity test (also known as a pack test). They will be qualified to apply as Wildland Firefighters, and meet the National Wildfire Coordinating Group Red Card Qualification Standards.

The Women in Wildland Fire Boot Camp will be held October 5-7 and October 12-14 at Beaverhead Work Center, Black Range Ranger District just outside of Truth or Consequences, NM. Attendance both weekends is required and there is pre-work. The deadline for applications is August 31 at 4:30 p.m. MST and selections will be made and notified by September 21.

Although the training focuses on women in wildland fire, all interested parties are encouraged and invited to attend. No previous experience is required. Use the attached Outreach Notice for further information and a link to the Google document Application. For additional information contact Marta Call at 575-388-8211 or martaicall@fs.fed.us.

For information on the Gila National Forest, check out our website at http://www.fs.usda.gov/gila