Fire Students Wait by Phone for Hot Date

About 40 Valley College students are realizing their dream. They’re waiting for the phone to ring.

As members of a newly formed wild land fire suppression crew made possible by a joint venture agreement between the college and the U.S. Forest Service, the students remain on call 24 hours a day, available in case of a fire-related emergency.

“They could be sent anywhere in the world. You could get a call at 3 o’clock in the morning and they say, ‘You’re going to Idaho,’ ” said crew leader Karl Smith, head of the college’s fire technology program. “They think that’s neat.”

The 40 crew members, ages 18 to 45, were selected from a pool of about 60. In June, they completed 80 hours of rigorous training in Angeles National Forest to earn the right to wear the crew’s bright yellow uniform--and $9 per hour of duty.

“When they see how dirty and nasty it is, they may change their minds,” Smith said. “We’ll lose a lot after the first fire.”

Valley is the only Southern California college with a crew, Smith said, but several community-based crews exist in Los Angeles.

“It’s past the point of fun,” crew member James York, 20, said of the training. “You can go a long time without sleep, and the work isn’t easy.”

Encino resident Aaron Bilsky, 21, said since most crew members hope to join fire departments later, they are willing to put in the time and the work.

“You feel a lot of satisfaction,” he said. “You feel that you’re accomplishing something. . . . It helps that it’s such a tight crew. Everybody looks out for each other.”

The Valley crew is second from the top on a Forest Service list of crews to call, Smith said, so members will probably see action in coming months.

Until then, the instructor said, “Even my wife has a crew roster. And I have a beeper, just in case.”