492 



and heavy equipment needed depend 

 mainly upon the kind of fuel, character 

 of the country, soils, and the avail- 

 ability of water. 



The equipment plan should show the 

 kinds and numbers of tools and equip- 

 ment to be furnished each initial- 

 attack station and also specify the 

 types and number of tools to be kept 

 at strategic caches throughout the area. 

 It should likewise designate the best 

 locations for heavy-equipment depots 

 and should include information on the 

 location and availability of suitable 

 tools and equipment belonging to other 

 nearby protection agencies and private 

 companies. 



The equipment inventory should be 

 kept up to date so that the protection 

 forces will not be hampered by de- 

 ficiencies, as to kind or quantity. 



MEN assigned fire-control responsi- 

 bilities must be carefully selected for 

 special physical and mental qualifica- 

 tions of strength, alertness, persever- 

 ance, initiative. They are the backbone 

 of the organization. They should be 

 employed for specific periods and, 

 whenever possible, for the entire fire 

 season. 



When fires escape the efforts of the 

 initial-attacking force, large numbers 

 of temporary fire fighters must some- 

 times be employed to cope successfully 

 with a bad situation. The job of super- 

 vising these men falls to a few key indi- 

 viduals in the regular protection or- 

 ganization. Selection and employment 

 of manpower of the right kind for both 

 regular and temporary employment re- 

 quires a carefully considered plan for 

 recruitment. 



Accomplishment in controlling for- 

 est fire depends largely on the ability 

 and efficiency of the protection forces. 

 Many individuals are employed for 

 such diversified positions as lookout, 

 suppression crew foreman, fire fighter, 

 patrolman, the radio operator, clerk, 

 packer, truck driver, tractor operator, 

 cook, telephone lineman, supervisory 

 officer, and many others. Usually it is 

 not possible to get individuals who are 



Yearbook^ of Agriculture 1949 



experienced in these lines of work. 

 Thorough training in all the phases of 

 their jobs is essential. 



The training plan usually outlines 

 the duties of each fire-control position 

 and provides for a type of instruction 

 that will qualify the individual for the 

 responsibility and the work to which 

 he is assigned. 



PROPER SUPERVISION of the entire 

 fire organization for a specific area is 

 needed. Even the best prepared plans 

 and their execution sometimes fail to 

 control fires in their early stage. Some 

 fires have needlessly become disastrous 

 conflagrations. When situations de- 

 velop that are too much for the initial- 

 protection forces to handle, a directing 

 head or ground command must be 

 available. On the national forests, the 

 district rangers usually have this re- 

 sponsibility. On non-Federal lands, the 

 State rangers or the company fire chief 

 is the ground command. Regardless of 

 the title, provision for a ground com- 

 mand should be made in planning pro- 

 tection for an area. 



Even after the main requisites in 

 fire-control planning have been care- 

 fully worked out, there still is the in- 

 tangible human element which mate- 

 rially influences the effectiveness of a 

 fire organization. 



Suitable living accommodations and 

 food must be planned for and provided 

 in order to care for the men properly, 

 maintain morale, and obtain maximum 

 efficiency. 



Loyalty and esprit de corps of the 

 personnel is important and must not 

 be overlooked. Every key individual 

 must feel that he is an important cog 

 in the machine and that his best effort 

 is needed to keep it going. Lookouts 

 must feel that the entire organization 

 is depending upon them to detect all 

 fires while they are still small. Initial- 

 attack men must believe that their fail- 

 ure to control small fires will result in 

 disastrous conflagrations. Maintenance 

 men must realize that the condition of 

 roads and telephone lines will mean 

 success or failure in the control of fires. 



