Firewalker Wildland Team

The Firewalker Wildland Team was created in March 1995. Members consist of volunteer and career personnel. The purpose of the team is to provide additional resource assistance during wildland fire incidents. The development of the team followed the standardized concept of an organized structure similar to the Hazardous Material and Technical Rescue Teams.

Members receive advanced training in fire behavior, strategy and tactics, Incident Management System positions, and safety specific to wildland fire. Along with the classroom training, the team conducts field exercise drills to utilize the learned skills in a controlled environment, such as fire line construction, special equipment techniques, and team tactics to help better mitigate an emergency situation.

The team is responsible for prescribed burning within the unincorporated areas of Volusia County. Prescribed burning helps create barriers or firelines between developed areas and the wildland environment by reducing ground fuels through active controlled burning. The team has conducted prescribed burns in the Plantation Pines and Daytona Park Estates subdivisions as well as the Spruce Creek area. These burns were the result of partnering with the Nature Conservancy to develop a sound program for responsible prescribed burning. As a result, five Volusia County Fire Services members have become Florida State Certified Burn Managers. The team will continue to conduct prescribed burns in unincorporated Volusia County as warranted.