Through its partners and its local units, GFC provides wildfire prevention tools, information and support. Specialized firefighter training services and resources are provided to city, county and other municipal fire departments and state agencies.

Wildland firefighters work in natural environments, such as forests, preventing and fighting fires, and performing rescue and aid services.

Wildland Firefighter Training is for:

  • Fire Department personnel – must be a Georgia Certified Firefighter, or for the volunteer firefighter, a minimum of Basic Firefighter Module One with live fire
  • State Agency personnel – must be affiliated with a NWCG member agency such as the GFC, or Federal wildland fire agencies through direct membership or agreement
  • Cooperator personnel – must be affiliated with GFC under their employer’s cooperative wildfire agreement
  • All students must be 18 years of age to participate in this training.

How Do I Receive Training?

GFC now offers Wildfire Preparedness Training for fire departments and other cooperators locally. This training can be for an individual fire department of for multiple cooperators in an area. GFC wildfire preparedness training will provide cooperators with a basic knowledge of fire weather, fuel, and terrain and how those impact wildfires. Additionally, the training will provide knowledge on how to safely operate in a wildfire environment while implementing structure triage, structure protection, and mop up operations. The training will also cover what to expect when working in cooperation with GFC fire suppression personnel and equipment and how GFC will interact with cooperating agencies. This is the most value-added training GFC can provide to cooperators.

Register for courses required for Firefighter Type 2 Qualification Requirements & Field Exercise

NWCG Fire Fighter Type 2 training is available for those individuals looking for more in-depth wildfire training with continuing education or training credits. The required courses are available online. L-180, S-190, and S-130 are available on the USFA National Fire Academy website and ICS-100 and IS-700 are available on the FEMA Independent Study Program website. To become certified, you must be employed by an NWCG partner agency where you will complete an additional field day and an arduous work capacity test. If requested, GFC can provide a field day to complete the S-130 course however, students must have a full complement of wildland PPE (Boots, gloves, pants and shirt or jumpsuit, hardhat, eye protection, and fire shelter of the appropriate size that meets or exceeds NFPA 1977 before requesting field training. Completion of the field day will earn a student a certificate of completion but not certification.

GFC is the agency having jurisdiction for wildland fire training in Georgia. However, we do not certify or deploy wildland firefighters who are not employees.

What to Wear for Field Exercise Training

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Requirements

Trainees will not be able to participate in a field exercise without the REQUIRED Wildland Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and Protective Footwear.

There are seven (7) basic items that every wildland firefighter trainee must possess when reporting to a hosted field exercise day.

  1. NFPA 1977 SPEC. Hardhat (not Fireman’s Helmet)
  2. NFPA 1977 SPEC. Goggles/Eye Protection
  3. NFPA 1977 SPEC. Fire Shirt
  4. NFPA 1977 SPEC. Leather Fire Gloves
  5. NFPA 1977 SPEC. Fire Shelter
  6. NFPA 1977 SPEC. Fire Pants or NFPA 1977 SPEC. Yellow “Overpant” or Jean or “BDU” Style (big enough to be used as an “overpant”).
  7. Fireline Boots – must meet at least all of the following requirements:
    • Eight-inch minimum boot height
    • All leather uppers (No synthetic collars or panels)
    • Lace-up (no zippers)
    • Defined heel
    • Oil resistant soles
    • Rating of Good or Better on sole heat resistance
    • Non-slip sole – NO steel toe

Any other items such as gear packs, radio packs, etc. are entirely optional and not required.

Course Descriptions

The pre-work consists of on-line training that is to be completed by each individual prior to attending the 2-day field day. The pre-work is completed through the GFC’s online learning portal, with links to the NWCG and FEMA learning portals. You MUST bring your certificates on the morning of the first of class. Failure to have your certificates on hand will result in you not being able to participate in the classroom or field day exercises. The required courses and links are as follows:

S-190 Introduction to Wildland Fire Behavior

This course, developed by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG), provides instruction in the primary factors affecting the start and spread of wildfire and recognition of potentially hazardous situations. S-190 is typically taught in conjunction with or prior to Firefighter Training, S-130. The material is broken into three online modules (1 to 3 hours each).

S-130 Firefighter Training

This course, developed by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG), addresses the foundational skills universal to all wildland firefighters. The material is broken into twelve on-line modules (1 to 3 hours each) and a mandatory, instructor-led field day exercise. Each online module explains the concepts and skills that will be performed and evaluated on the field day exercise. Module twelve contains optional knowledge areas (pump operations, map and compass, fire investigation and cultural resources) that are very useful concepts but not required due to time constraints.

L-180 Human Factors in the Wildland Fire Service:

The L-180 Human Factors in the Wildland Fire Service, the online course exposes students to human performance concepts as part of basic wildland firefighter training.

I-110c: Introduction to the Incident Command System, ICS

ICS 100, Introduction to the Incident Command System, introduces the Incident Command System (ICS) and provides the foundation for higher-level ICS training. This course describes the history, features and principles, and organizational structure of the Incident Command System. It also explains the relationship between ICS and the National Incident Management System (NIMS).

I-700.B: An Introduction to the National Management System

This course provides an overview of the National Incident Management System (NIMS). The National Incident Management System defines the comprehensive approach guiding the whole community – all levels of government, non-governmental organizations (NGO, and the private sector – work together seamlessly to prevent, protect against, mitigate, respond to, and recover from the effects of incidents. The course provides learners with a basic understanding of NIMS concepts, principles, and components.

Each course will provide you with more details pertaining to the course and receiving the certificate of completion.