Fort Simpson (Oct 03/03) - Twenty seasonal firefighters returned from B.C. on Saturday, drawing an end to the longest fire season in memory.

A normal fire season usually entails work from mid-May to mid-August. However, the Fort Simpson crews were repeatedly called upon to help out in fire-ravaged southern B.C. The latest group to return had been deployed to Vavenby, a community about the size of Fort Simpson, located approximately 100 kms north of Kamloops.

Working on extreme slopes for 19 days, the crews had to devise safety plans tailored to the severe conditions, unit leader Gilbert Cazon explained. The grades were so steep that running downhill would cause a person to lose control -- the only way to stop would be to latch on to one of the massive cedar, balsam pine or hemlock trees, according to Cazon.

Those trees could be saviours but they could also be killers. With fire burning their roots, some of the immense trunks collapsed and careened dangerously down the hills.

"There was no way that CATs (heavy equipment) or anything could get in there, so they put the best crews they had in there," Cazon said. "From the get go you're alert to everything. You watch for potential escape areas."

In addition to the mental fatigue, the physical exertion was also greater due to the mountains and extra weight of carrying fire shelters and additional radios, he noted.

Despite the harsh conditions, Cazon said the Fort Simpson unit maintained high morale, and some even broke the tension by cracking jokes.

The 20 firefighters were assigned to tackle close to 45 per cent of the 4,000-hectare inferno's perimeter. With some assistance from badly needed rain and snow, they were able to contain the fire eight kilometres from Vavenby.

"Everybody knew their job and they knew their job well," Cazon said. "It's a big thing we have done, we have accomplished."

A letter of appreciation from Jamie Lund, of B.C.'s Ministry of Forests, attests to that. The letter reads, in part:

"Fire K20436 was a very difficult fire to control. A number of factors made suppression difficult such as the weather, fuel types and topography. The objectives set forth each and every day for the crew were met each day. They worked safely and efficiently as a unit crew. The Nogha unit crew represented their territory professionally."

Crew members Michael Tsetso and Peter Cazon Jr. were putting away gear at the Nogha warehouse on Monday. Although it's been an unusually long season, they said they'd jump at the chance to again fight fires in the south or around the world.

"We could go for a third (trip)," Cazon Jr. said.

Tsetso added, "We could go all winter."