(The Center Square) – More than two dozen Nevada National Guard members are now certified for wildland firefighting.

Twenty-eight soldiers completed the certification this month, something officials called a “crucial step for enhancing the region’s firefighting capabilities.”

Units participating in the certification process included 609th Engineer Company, Alpha Company, Bravo Company, and 150th Maintenance Company, as well as the 72 Military Police and elements of the 422nd. Training involved line digging, drip torch, and fusee training, something that involves colored flares to light fires. Soldiers also learned about mounting and dismounting from fire transport vehicles or ‘crew buggies’ that carry up to 10 people and provide storage for equipment. Meanwhile, the soldiers familiarize themselves with standard firefighting procedures, today’s best safety practices, and hand tool operations.

Staff Sgt. Cameron Fricke of the 609th Combat Engineer Company was happy to do it.

“I’m proud to protect our home,” said Fricke, who serves as the Nevada Army National Guard’s Wildland Firefighting Support Noncommissioned Officer. “We are locals who are dedicated to serving our communities, committed to being Nevadans helping Nevadans.”

Fricke comes from a family of first responders. His father was a battalion chief with the East Fork Fire Department. Fricke’s mother was a dispatcher for the Eastern Sierra Interagency Firefront and Douglas County. Fricke wants to one day become an operations officer within the National Army National Guard’s Joint Operations Center.

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State and local fire management agencies in Nevada protect around 9 million acres of state and local land. According to USDA Forest Service, more than 375 wildfires in 2023 burned 1,305 acres in Nevada.

The initiative was made possible through a partnership between Nevada Division of Forestry and the Nevada Army National Guard.