Gov. Gregoire passes fire safety qualifications test

For Immediate Release: July 14, 2005

OLYMPIA � July 14, 2005 � Today Gov. Christine Gregoire earned her �red card,� meeting safety qualifications that will allow her to visit fire lines to get firsthand information. With the fire season under way now in Eastern Washington, the governor will be prepared to inspect affected areas.

�I want to understand the conditions that our firefighters face in keeping our families, communities and resources safe,� said the governor. �Having this training means that I will be able to safely enter these areas to get the most up-to-date information.�

Gregoire is the first governor in Washington history to receive this training. She completed the firefighters work capacity test by walking one mile in under the 16 minute-limit and properly deploying her fire shelter. Department of Natural Resources staff in a non-suppression role are expected to undergo light physical fitness training as well as an eight-hour annual firefighter refresher course. The governor will be able to approach a fire line, but will have a qualified individual escorting her.

�I have the utmost respect for the hard and dangerous work done by our firefighters. Now that I have sampled just a sliver of what they undergo in the course of their day, that respect has deepened.�

Gregoire was accompanied by Maj. Gen. Timothy Lowenberg, adjutant general of the Washington Military Department. The first gentleman, Mike Gregoire, also participated in the exercise, which took place on the Chehalis Western Trail near Lacey.

The governor declared a drought in March and expressed concern that dry conditions would pose greater threats of major fires. In anticipation of an active fire season, Gregoire participated on Monday in a tabletop wild-land firefighting exercise with representatives of a number of state and federal agencies, including the Emergency Management Division of the Military Department, Washington State Patrol, Department of Natural Resources and Federal Emergency Management Agency. The tabletop exercise will ensure the highest level of coordination by those agencies and officials charged with executing the state�s wild-land firefighting plan.

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