DNR Deploys Maryland Forest Service Personnel To Assist With Wildland Fires In Texas And Georgia

Annapolis, Md. (May 13, 2011) -A contingent of three highly specialized Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Forest Service firefighters are currently fighting wildfires in Georgia, and another group of seven veteran firefighters leaves today to help manage fires in the West Zone of Texas.

“Maryland’s firefighters put their lives on the line to protect citizens and natural resources,” said Governor Martin O’Malley. “Our teams are specially trained to fight these dangerous wildfires and we are grateful that we are able to help other states in their time of need.”

DNR Forest Service personnel will supply and staff two wildland fire engines to help manage fires in the west zone of Texas. Our engines may be assigned anywhere in the zone on existing fires or used for initial attack (new fires).The team of seven will travel from Green Ridge State Forest headquarters in Allegany County to the Trans Pecos Fire Complex in Midland, Texas.

The first contingent is currently helping fight 94,000 acres of active fire on the Honey Prairie incident in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in southern Georgia.

Through a Cooperative Agreement with the USDA Forest Service, DNR’s Forest Service provides trained firefighting experts to assist with the efforts to contain and control some of the largest wildfires in the nation. Maryland staff have participated in mobilizing wildland firefighters for dispatch throughout the United States since 1974. For more information on DNR’s Interagency Wildland Fire Mobilization, visit www.dnr.state.md.us/forests/fire/mdfire.asp.

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is the state agency responsible for providing natural and living resource-related services to citizens and visitors. DNR manages nearly a half-million acres of public lands and 17,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries and wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A national leader in land conservation, DNR-managed parks and natural, historic and cultural resources attract 11 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number one environmental priority. Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov.