United in Service

Soldiers pose for a photo while working on the Dollar Fire of the West Mountain Complex of fires near Cascade, Idaho. Photo courtesy U.S. Army.

BY GREG PERRY AND JESSICA GARDETTO

The rhythmic, pulsating "whop-whop-whop" of a distant helicopter mixed with the thuds of boots hitting dry dirt as the soldiers exited their vehicles. As he gathered his gear, Greg paused to look up at the steep incline that loomed dramatically in front of them. A column of smoke rose above the green conifer trees in the warm morning air. As he assessed the scene before him, Greg knew they had a long day ahead. They were already exhausted after hiking many miles of steep, rugged terrain the past 28 days.

Greg gathered the crew of soldiers to review the day’s assignment: to gather the hose that had previously been laid to transport water up the mountain to the wildfire. It was a daunting task given the thousands of feet of hose snaking through the steep, rugged country. 

As a former U.S. Marine, Greg knew what would motivate his current colleagues. “If we can get every last foot of hose out today, we won’t have to hike back up there tomorrow,” he said. Even though they’d just started to recover from the previous days’ tasks, the soldiers immediately went to work. 

Greg Perry was serving as a task force leader for a soldier strike team assisting with wildfire suppression this past summer. U.S. military assistance is normally requested when civilian firefighting resources are fully committed to wildfires and addition personnel are needed. Over 250 active-duty personnel with the 14th Brigade Engineer Battalion at Joint Base Lewis-McChord were mobilized to wildfires in Idaho in August. As a veteran, Greg combined his military service with his wildland firefighting experience to lead a group of 45 of those soldiers, commonly called a task force, during their fire assignment on the West Mountain and Middle Fork Complex of wildfires in Idaho. He worked with three other firefighters to lead the soldiers while they served as wildland firefighting hand crews.

Greg, a member of the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians in Oregon, joined the U.S. Marine Corps after high school. After the military, he worked in law enforcement and then started working in wildland fire management for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. He has worked as a Regional Fuels Specialist for the Pacific Region Division in California for the last eight years. Greg’s current job involves working with Tribes to reduce wildfire risk throughout the state, and he has spent countless days working on wildfire suppression. 

Greg combined his military knowledge with his wildland fire experience to lead the team of soldiers during their fire assignment. While the soldiers received basic wildland fire training, they were new to the fireline. He knew the importance of relating to the soldiers on a military level, appealing to their task-oriented mindset. This came in handy that hot August morning when, after many days of arduous assignments, the soldiers had to scale steep, challenging terrain to remove hose and water pumps. 

Greg’s ability to relate to the soldiers and motivate them helped the team get the job done faster and with enthusiasm.  

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 U.S. Army Firefighter Chris Grissett digs out a stump hole as he works on the Boulder Fire in Idaho. Photo by Jacob Chadwick, Bureau of Land Management-Nevada.

“Soldiers and wildland firefighters have very similar mentalities,” Greg said “If you have confidence in your leader and know that he or she will be shoulder-to-shoulder with you through the most challenging assignments, you’re much more apt to trust that person and work even harder to get the job done.” 

Greg and the soldiers removed more than 10,000 feet of hose that hot August day, along with numerous pumps and other equipment, which assisted with post-fire recovery efforts and allowed the equipment to be repurposed for additional fire suppression operations. Their 30-day assignment involved fireline work on seven large wildfires and two fire complexes, which are clusters of wildfires in proximity to one another. 
Greg’s work with the soldiers emphasized the connection between military service and wildland fire management. His service in the U.S. Marine Corps created the foundation for a successful wildland fire career, and he continues to use the skills he learned in the military in his current job, like working with the soldiers this past summer.  

“We join the military to serve our country, and wildland firefighting is an extension of that service,” Greg said. “This is one of many reasons why transitioning from the military to wildland firefighting makes sense.”

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U.S. Army soldiers hiking on a wildfire assignment in Idaho. Photo by Christopher Grissett, U.S. Army North.

Greg Perry is a Regional Fuels Specialist for the Bureau of Indian Affairs Division of Wildland Fire Management Pacific Region in California. 
Jessica Gardetto is a Public Affairs Specialist with Interior’s Office of Wildland Fire.