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Why is the Suicide Rate among Wildland Firefighters so High ?

St. Phatty

Active member
I didn't know where to post this.

I do wish that incredibly hard working group of people well.

Could have posted in Toker's Den ... but the subject is kind of a Buzz-kill.


Just saw this in the news back in November -

"On Sunday November 5 we lost another wildland firefighter to the suicide epidemic."

"After completing his shift that morning at CAL FIRE’s Station 20 in El Cajon, California Captain Ryan Mitchell took his own life at the Interstate 8 Pine Valley bridge in San Diego County near Pine Valley."

http://wildfiretoday.com/2017/11/07/we-lost-another-firefighter/


Then, reading more, I found out that Captain Mitchell's death was not a rare event, very unfortunately.

2 more articles on the Grim Subject -
http://wildfiretoday.com/2017/11/04/suicide-rate-among-wildland-firefighters-is-astronomical/

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2017/10/wildland-firefighter-suicide/544298/


I talked with a retired urban firefighter from Wisconsin today, at the gym. He said the wildland firefighting job is very stressful with super-long shifts.

One of the most painful physical conditions I've ever had was lung pain, from not using proper ventilation while learning to carve stones and gems.

I mentioned that to the firefighter and he said that lung-pain from smoke inhalation doesn't make it any better.


I figure a major pay raise might help.

In the fire in Ventura-Santa Barbara, 1500 of the 8500 of the fire-fighters are prison slave labor.

http://www.newsweek.com/california-...hters-who-are-battling-flames-southern-748618

They are doing total ass-busting work defending million dollar homes. Working 24 hour shifts.


Anyway, it's more than a little problem when the people our civilization needs to fight wildfires, are checking out - and our backup is prison slave labor.


If I was Governor Brown, I would visit the family of Captain Mitchell, give them some extra money, and try and find out what was eating him.


The only other thing I can think is, possibly some of the people for whom wildland fire-fighting is an appealing career, are more prone to suicide.


If anybody here has lost a family member, I apologize for broaching a difficult subject.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
When I hear about something like this I think of the high suicide rate among our service people when they come home.

Sometimes when you have a job where you are doing something bigger than you its very satisfying you feel good about your place in life. When they come home they dont have that.

Same goes for the inuit people they have a high suicide rate. Used to be that the men were hunter gathers. It was a big responsibility to bring home food to the family. Once the government steps in and gives you food stamps you loose the purpose in your life. This especially hard on men.

I wonder if the suicides of these fireman are useally in the off season?
 

Easy7

Active member
Veteran
Enlightenment is not so easy. Traumatic experience does not go away. It's hard to learn how to live with the past, present and future. Lot's of people in their life might not support them always. Probably some drug abuse, alcohol, or whatever vice, that helps and hurts.

I son't see mental health agencies being as sound of miracle workers as what we hope. We know a lot but it's just not integrated and actualized.

Lot's of those guys are probably adrenaline junkies. Suicide is probably a huge rush and seems to have an illusion of controlling destiny.

I do not support suicide. It's easy to risk our lives cause it's hard to be aware, unware and at peace. Proabably similar among a lot of high stress, high loss occupations.
 

St. Phatty

Active member
Aside from the unavoidable minor smoke inhalation (which cuts into my bud smoking !) I find peace when I do controlled burns.

Pyromaniac Zen, maybe you could call it.

But I look at Governor Brown in Calif. I have a long letter to him writing itself in my mind.

But what I have to say, none of his underlings will want to relay to him.

Brown was in charge when 20+ people died because of the negligence of community leaders in Sonoma County.

I would lay that at the feet of Governor Brown, among others.

But nobody in the state of California would charge Governor Brown with Negligent Homicide.

So one of the first things I have to say to him is, charge Yourself with Negligent Homicide. Spend a week in jail. Show that you're turning over a new leaf, taking your responsibilities as Chief Executive VERY seriously.

The responsibility that the Governor & all the "Emergency Managers" have is sloughed off onto the firefighters, when the rubber meets the road.

The suits all have 6 figure pay checks. The fire-fighters have sore breathing passages and blue-collar existences. (except for the 1/5 of California firefighters thate are prison inmates).

If they want to find a way to succeed, relative to taking care of their fire-fighters, they're going to have to change some things up.


As far as the current fire ... most large wildfires go out because they run out of fuel, or because the rains come.

The fire in Ventura/ Santa Barbara has 1 million+ acres to burn, and so far all the weather forecast offers is one afternoon of showers in December, and another in January.

10 inches of rain a year is the normal definition for a desert. They might play catch up rain-wise in February, but overall the whole situation gives me the feeling that you get at the beginning of that movie "San Andreas".
 

packerfan79

Active member
Veteran
I didn't know where to post this.

I do wish that incredibly hard working group of people well.

Could have posted in Toker's Den ... but the subject is kind of a Buzz-kill.


Just saw this in the news back in November -

"On Sunday November 5 we lost another wildland firefighter to the suicide epidemic."

"After completing his shift that morning at CAL FIRE’s Station 20 in El Cajon, California Captain Ryan Mitchell took his own life at the Interstate 8 Pine Valley bridge in San Diego County near Pine Valley."

https://wildfiretoday.com/2017/11/07/we-lost-another-firefighter/


Then, reading more, I found out that Captain Mitchell's death was not a rare event, very unfortunately.

2 more articles on the Grim Subject -
https://wildfiretoday.com/2017/11/04/suicide-rate-among-wildland-firefighters-is-astronomical/

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2017/10/wildland-firefighter-suicide/544298/


I talked with a retired urban firefighter from Wisconsin today, at the gym. He said the wildland firefighting job is very stressful with super-long shifts.

One of the most painful physical conditions I've ever had was lung pain, from not using proper ventilation while learning to carve stones and gems.

I mentioned that to the firefighter and he said that lung-pain from smoke inhalation doesn't make it any better.


I figure a major pay raise might help.

In the fire in Ventura-Santa Barbara, 1500 of the 8500 of the fire-fighters are prison slave labor.

https://www.newsweek.com/california...hters-who-are-battling-flames-southern-748618

They are doing total ass-busting work defending million dollar homes. Working 24 hour shifts.


Anyway, it's more than a little problem when the people our civilization needs to fight wildfires, are checking out - and our backup is prison slave labor.


If I was Governor Brown, I would visit the family of Captain Mitchell, give them some extra money, and try and find out what was eating him.


The only other thing I can think is, possibly some of the people for whom wildland fire-fighting is an appealing career, are more prone to suicide.


If anybody here has lost a family member, I apologize for broaching a difficult subject.

I wouldn't expect Jerry Brown to visit them. They aren't illegal Aliens.
 

St. Phatty

Active member
Mushrooms taste great.

At one particular location where I did a small controlled burn using blackberry stalks, the Fungi LOVED it.

Within a week, there was a fungus the size of a football. One of the fastest growing plant things I've ever seen.


I've been poisoned via Black Widow and food poisoning.

I'm scared I wouldn't know which mushrooms were safe.

Maybe if I took a class.
 

Easy7

Active member
Veteran
Probably unrealized fear goes a lot into PTSD. How anger surfaces instead of realizing fear and integrating into more positive emotions.

It's easy to be a man, it's hard to be a wise man. Dealing with people that really only know simulated fear in movies has to be hard with PTSD. Being alone and not having people that relate.

Then again some people appear completely immune.
 
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