Wildfire Response
Experts in Crisis Management
We are industry-leading professionals in executing wildland fire suppression and wildland fire training. Our crews and medics are proficient with state-of-the art suppression and management equipment. We can help to prevent disasters before they start, or control them to minimize spread. Strategic is the preferred team to work with, as we manage risk to protect what matters.
Our teams are highly disciplined and motivated while adhering to the highest standards of safety and quality. Extensively experienced in remote worksite operations, our crews work around helicopters, variable terrain, and heavy machinery year-round. Our crews can interface seamlessly with any organization to ensure operational success.
Strategic Wildfire and URSA Tactical have partnered to provide safe, professional, and highly skilled wildfire crews throughout British Columbia. URSA Tactical now operates in the Central and Northern regions while Strategic Wildfire operates throughout the Coastal and Southern Interior. We have Marshalling Sites across British Columbia – from the Cariboo to the Okanagan to Vancouver Island including Prince George, Chetwynd, Quesnel, Vernon, Campbell River and Port McNeill. We exceed all government requirements for contract crews in Western Canada.
Interested in working with us?
These are the attributes we are looking for:
You possess a high level of physical fitness:
Firefighters must be able to carry a 45-pound pack for three miles (4.8km) in under 45 minutes and complete an intense relay test. This is an arduous stress test that every firefighter working at Strategic Wildfire must demonstrate. You can train for this by going for long hikes with a heavy pack. These tests are a small taste of what it will be like to work multi-day fireline shifts. A very high level of fitness is essential to be considered.
You can handle working and living in tough conditions:
Firefighting takes physical endurance and mental stamina. The season is a long, tough haul. Be prepared to work 12 hours a day in extreme conditions (and be compensated handsomely for all that overtime*). You will be on the front line for weeks at a time living in a tent. When you have been staring flames in the face for days, can you still crack a joke with the team? Can you be fully present in harsh, sooty conditions and go the extra mile for a struggling team member? Can you maintain a sense of camaraderie and purpose even when every muscle aches? A steadfast ability to show up with grit, perseverance, and positivity, day in and day out is what we see in our top crews.
* Note: Strategic Wildfire offers paid travel, daily and weekly overtime
You can take direction from others in high-pressure environments:
Rapid-fire instructions, constant adaptation, and extreme terrain. These are daily realities in wildland firefighting; therefore composure, quick thinking, and swift execution are critical when up against a wall of flame.
You have firefighting or forestry experience:
You have additional experience in the backcountry:
Do you camp, hike, explore, or fish in your leisure time? Can you make the most of uncomfortable conditions? If you are readily familiar with bugs, bad weather, disorientation, blisters, wild animals, and also the joys of being in the backcountry – this experience will be an asset while living in wildland fire environments.
You’ll need:
Good-quality hiking boots
A warm sleeping bag
A good quality tent ( 2-3 person recommended )
A comfortable camping mattress
*Note: All safety equipment and tools provided