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Winding 470 miles along the backbone of the Appalachian mountain chain, the Blue Ridge Parkway spans two states and crosses 29 counties. The physical layout of the Parkway dictates the need for close cooperation in the fire service community. Lands bordering the Parkway vary from the urban environs of small cities to very rural mountain communities and other national park and national forest lands. With the complexities associated with this diversity, access and response become significant challenges. The rapid pace of growth in private development is stripping the capabilities of all fire suppression agencies. Several of these remote communities have been identified as high-risk communities. The primary providers of suppression in these classic wildland-urban interface areas are often the local volunteer rural fire department.
The Blue Ridge Parkway has consistently demonstrated innovation, collaboration, and commitment to community assistance to utilize the Rural Fire Assistance program to enhance firefighter training, increase safety, and improve preparedness by working with these local rural fire departments to increase their capability to prevent, detect, and/or provide suppression for wildland fires. The success of this program is a direct result of the enthusiasm, collaboration, and commitment of the law enforcement rangers who manage and implement the program despite its many logistical challenges.
In 2004, the Parkway provided personal protective equipment, hand tools, power saws, blowers, basic wildland firefighter training, and safety training for 49 local fire departments. In September, the Parkway also collaborated with the Virginia Department of Forestry, Bedford County Fire and Rescue, and the USDA Forest Service, to sponsor the 3 rd annual Bedford County Interagency Wildland Fire Academy . Six wildland firefighter training courses were offered during this week-long academy, operated under an incident command system to simulate the operational organization of a wildland fire response incident. This successful program has trained more than 700 students over the course of three years.
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