Free Smokejumper Essay Sample
Imagine - everyday, you dive into wildland fire that is almost 2,000 degrees in a fear that this might kill you and your teammates. But you cannot stop. Because you are a Smokejumper. Smokejumpers are wildland firefighters who are responsible for extinguishing the wildfires. As the associate director of the wildland firefighter foundation states from the video “Learn More About Smokejumpers”, “Wildland firefighters are one of the most underrated public servants we have walking this planet. They put their life on the line every day- doing a job they love” (Minor).
Then, why are the smokejumpers around? Can't just normal firefighters do their jobs? The answer to this question is a no. To be a smokejumper, you have to know or be experienced in fighting wildfire. You also should have top tier physical strength and be capable of maintaining calm under high pressure. They also go through fitness tests, jumps, and medical care training (National Geographic Society). The conditions smokejumpers and firefighters have to cope with are totally different from the normal firefighters. Unlike normal firefighters, smokejumping requires to jump off from the helicopter to just reach the fire: “The reason why smokejumpers are around is so they jump on fires that fire trucks can’t go to” (Minor). This job has been around since the 1940s, and currently has about 400 smokejumpers serving for the U.S. government, but it is not only the U.S. that has smokejumpers. A country with an expansive woodland such as Australia and Russia has them too (National Geographic Society).
As mentioned before, this job was created back in the 1940s. Since then, every jumper among 200 died while battling the extremes of fire. There are various reasons for their death. According to “Wildfire Today,” the first cause of death was related to medical issues, second aircraft incident, third vehicle accident, followed by entrapments, and many other dangerous factors (Gabbert). For Gabbert’s last words, he added that people should put more attention to educating the wildland firefighters about emergency medical care and to check vehicles in order to prevent technical issues (Gabbert). Although the smokejumpers are trained to survive inside the woodland fire, their work environment is still in the middle of mother nature. Which means that there are also unexpected and unwanted accidents that occur during their service, such as the intensive heat of spreading wildfire, risky drilling procedures, bad landing spot choices, smashed rocks, wildlifes, and an agony caused by loss of your teammates (Wilber). They pass away from falling trees and wild animals attacks as well.
This astonishing and risky job may look like they get paid well, but in reality, they get paid less than normal Costco workers. Also, even if the smokejumpers are trying their best to secure our safety, not many people notice this profession. Smokejumpers risk their life or even lose their life, without a single news article published about them, leaving this world not acknowledged by the public. They love their profession, and are passionate about them and cannot stop being a smokejumper because it means a world to them. We should pay more attention and be thankful to the people who are serving us every day, regarding that they are literally pushing themselves into a burning fire.
