Story by Master Sgt. Becky Vanshur August 08, 2021 at 02:45PM Idaho National Guard Soldiers and Airmen made organizational history by sending wildland Firefighter Type 2 Red Card certified Guardsmen to northern Idaho to fight fires for the first time. The newly assigned crewmembers of the Task Force Timber Shield left Boise Aug. 4 to assist the Idaho Department of Lands’ mission of containing more than 15 significant wildland fires currently burning in Idaho. Approximately 72 Idaho Guardsmen have earned their FFT2 Incident Qualification Cards, commonly known as a Red Card certification and more personnel are currently completing the training in anticipation of additional missions. The additional training for more Red Card certified Guardsmen stemmed after Idaho’s governor issued the emergency declaration July 9 to mobilize Idaho National Guard fire line FFT2 qualified personnel to work on active wildfire efforts on the 6.2 million acres of land across mostly northern Idaho where IDL provides fire protection. Guardsmen were issued firefighting personal protective equipment, fire-resistant clothing, hand tools and sleeping accommodations from the National Interagency Fire Center just prior to leaving.
