He credits this to the work of defiant residents and volunteer firefighters. DeMers said he lit a backfire to protect his home and others nearby. I was fighting tooth and nail, he said. It was the most serious thing I ever did, having to light a fire by my house and hope it didn t hook up with the other fire and come back toward us. I haven t slept in three days.
Volunteer firefighters are also tired.
They ve been working not only on forest fires but also on small fires in their districts. Plus, they have day jobs. FEMA Director James Lee Witt said Montana s fires are so bad that the federal government will pay 100 percent of eligible local and state firefighting costs. The agency s Fire Suppression Assistant Program normally doesn t apply to volunteer and local fire departments unless they meet certain regulations. But Witt said reimbursement is being expanded because of the state s fire situation.