15-man crew to aid Calif. fight fire

Gov. Ralph DLG. Torres and Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services assistant fire chief Jesse Mesa pose in a group photo with members of the 15-man crew as well as DFEMS officials/trainers during a press conference yesterday at the governor’s office’s conference room. The crew members will be deployed to California to assist in fighting forest fires. (Ferdie de la Torre)

The CNMI will be sending today and tomorrow a 15-man crew to California to help the state fight forest fires.

Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and the Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services presented yesterday the crew, which consists of eight firefighters and seven civilians.

DFEMS spokesman Derek Gersonde said members of the 15-man crew were certified as Type II U.S. Forest Service Handcrew Firefighters.

Gersonde said 15 are part of 26 individuals who obtained their certificates after being trained in April on how to fight brush and wildland fires.

The training was conducted by DFEMS in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service.

The 15-man crew will be deployed to California for the next 30 to 40 days.

Last Wednesday, DFEMS was notified that Region 5 has exhausted its resources and is requesting for personnel from the Northern Marianas.

The U.S. Forest Service will cover all costs, including wages, associated with the deployment of the 15 crew members.

Torres said he is very proud of the crew and looks forward to them representing the CNMI in helping California extinguish forest fires.

“At the same time we’re going to miss them, and we wish them good luck and we pray for their safety,” Torres said.

The governor thanked the firefighters and the volunteers “for their bravery in assisting those in need.”

“I thank their families for their patience and for all their sacrifices as we see our guys go out and fight the fires,” he said.

The CNMI last sent 17 crewmembers to assist in fighting wildland fires in the U.S. mainland in 2014.

Prior to 2014, the CNMI also sent a firefighting crew not just to California but also to Idaho and Nevada.

Of the 15 crewmembers, one is from Rota and the rest are from Saipan, said DFEMS assistant fire chief Jesse Mesa.

Of the original 26 training participants, one is from Tinian but he moved to Texas.

“Stay alert and stay alive,” Mesa advised the crew.

Mesa said the selection process prioritizes the civilian crew. DFEMS then fills the extra slots with firefighters because of the fact that they also have to protect the CNMI.

One member of the 15-man crew, Martin Pangelinan Jr., looks forward to the experience as he had fought forest fires for eight years in southern California.

“This time around, I’m going out with people of the CNMI and I am glad to be one of the leaders,” said Pangelinan, who is on the civilian side.

Pangelinan said his main objective is to ensure everyone’s safety while they are fighting fires and that they all return home to their families.

Pangelinan was part of the group that was sent to California to fight wildfires in 2008, just two months after graduating from high school.

“I did not know what I was getting myself into, but I was excited,” he said.

Pangelinan described the experience as “ tough and exhausting,” being away from family, sleeping in the wilderness, not being able to take a shower for days, and other things.

When their tour was done, Pangelinan was given the opportunity to stay back for the rest of the fire season.

The following year, he was offered a position as a seasonal wildland firefighter with the U.S. Forest Service.

“It was then that I decided to move my family and I to Los Angeles, where I was stationed,” Pangelinan said. He was offered a permanent position that same year.

Pangelinan went from being a seasonal wildland firefighter to a senior firefighter.

Aside from Pangelinan, the six other civilians members are Shelwyn Taisacan, Marlon Garde, Lucio Kalen, Devin Deleon Guerrero, Jhonathan Kapileo, and Joshua Muna.

The eight members from DFEMS are Jun Kaipat, Paul Acebedo, Ralph Magofna, Joseph Lifoifoi, Jamal Mresbang, Abraham Quitugua, Albert Aldan, and Argernon Flores.