Blue Goose Wildland Fire Crew
USFWS R-1
Mid-Columbia River NWRC

Mission Statement

To produce a quality product in service to the American public, to provide a focused leadership development opportunity for agency personnel in wildland fire operations as part of an organized 20 person hand crew, and to provide an introduction to basic wildland fire skills for students of the Columbia Basin Job Corps.

Blue Goose is a US Fish and Wildlife Service Type II I.A. twenty-person hand crew located in Moses Lake, WA. The program was developed as a partnership between the USFWS and the Columbia Basin Job Corps to provide training opportunities for agency firefighters and students of the CBJC. The crew is available for assignment on a national basis.

The majority of the crew is filled with FWS agency detailers with some positions available on an interagency basis. Students of the CBJC are rotated through the program three to four at a time. Supervision of the program is provided by one full-time Superintendent and an Assistant Superintendent.

For the 2009 fire season the crew is planning on an operational period from June 10th through mid-September.

History:

The first Blue Goose crew was developed in the 1980’s as a Job Corps fire crew with oversight provided by FWS staff out of the Boise, ID office. The crew was moved to the Nampa (Centennial) Job Corps Center in the early 1990’s where it operated off and on until 2003. Region 1 of the FWS began the process of developing an organized training crew in 2004. In 2005 the Columbia Basin Job Corps agreed to host the crew in conjunction with the Mid-Columbia River NWRC. A full-time Superintendent was hired in late 2006 and the crew experienced its first fire season the summer of 2007. The program was fortunate to add a permanent Assistant Superintendent in 2008.

In the first two years of this new program, FWS firefighters from over half the regions in the country have had the opportunity to develop their leadership and suppression skill set as part of the crew. Previous assignments have included a mix of initial and extended attack fires in Idaho, Utah, Oregon, Washington, and northern California.

What to Expect:

Being a part of Blue Goose demands professionalism, discipline, and excellent physical conditioning. We seek self-sufficient and motivated individuals willing to learn while also offering their existing knowledge and abilites up to the crew.

The performance and welfare of the individual and of the crew depends on each crewmember arriving physically prepared. Potential detailers will need the physical conditioning required to hike several miles a day in a variety of topographical and environmental conditions and put in a full days work. The crew carries all gear, food, and water needed for a typical shift on the line. Pack weights excluding tools and saws will generally be between 35-40 pounds. Individuals that maintain year-round physical training will be much better prepared to meet these demands over the course of the summer and stay productive members of the team.