California wildfires might have the upper hand this fire season because 241 fewer seasonal firefighters will be on the lines.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the Department of the Interior has been unable to meet recruitment goals for seasonal firefighters. The shortage is partly to blame on the federal government shutdown that delayed recruitment efforts normally held in January. Recruits are trained in the spring and are ready to take on wildfires during the summer months.

It’s too late to hire and train firefighters now that the season has begun.

The Interior Department told The Times that the agency’s goal was to hire 1,600 seasonal firefighters. Only 1,359 were hired this year.

Unfortunately, this situation was predicted. On Jan. 11, 2019, NBC News reported that controlled burns, firefighter training, and seasonal hiring were all delayed due to the government shutdown.

“If you don’t do the hiring on time, then you can’t do the training on time, then you are not ready for the next fire season,” predicted Nick Goulette, executive director of forestry nonprofit Watershed Center in northern California, when he spoke to NBC in January.

Fighting California Wildfires Is Group Effort

The Interior Department and the U.S. Forest Service manage and own 57 percent of the 33 million acres of forestland in California. California state firefighters from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire), almost always lend a hand.

The Interior Department has between 4,500 and 5,000 firefighters, but the number is in dispute between the National Interagency Fire Center and the Interior Department.

The U.S. Forest Service did not have a number of seasonal firefighters hired this year available, but usually employs more than 10,000 firefighters each year.

Bobbie Scopa, former assistant fire director for operations in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska for the U.S. Forest Service, told The Times that if it’s a busy fire season, the entire West could end up competing for the same resources.

Some government officials say the government shutdown will affect operations for the rest of this year because firefighting crews are understaffed.

Kelly Martin, chief of fire and aviation management at Yosemite National Park, told The Times that only 28 firefighters are protecting the park right now, the absolute minimum. She said the park has not had that few fire fighting employees since 2006, when she started working at Yosemite.

Among Yosemite’s current job openings are deputy chief of wildland fire, fire ecologist, prescribed fire specialist, helicopter aviation manager, and several supervisory jobs.

The season for California wildfires starts at the end of July or early August. Conditions are ripe in the area for more devastating fires.

News about a shortage of firefighters coincides with the announcement that scientists have identified more than 100 wildfires burning in the Arctic just since June.

Senior scientist at the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) told CNN News, “The number and intensity of wildfires in the Arctic Circle is unusual and unprecedented.”

He said that the wildfires have coincided with unusual heat waves affecting Alaska, Canada and Siberia. The average June temperature in the latter was nearly 10 degrees above the area’s average.

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