South Carolina lends a hand in Georgia during wildfire prevention push
by Andy Johnson, IMT/VFA Coordinator
In early October, I had the opportunity to travel to Georgia with two of our own, Santee Unit Forester Anneta Pritchard and Firewise & Prevention Coordinator Drake Carroll, to help the U.S. Forest Service with a wildfire prevention and education assignment. Because of the federal shutdown, many of their prevention staff were unavailable, and they reached out to the states for support. South Carolina stepped up, and the three of us were proud to be part of that effort.
We traveled on October 1 and met up that evening in Lawrenceville. By the next morning’s 8:30 in-briefing, the team was squared away and ready to work.
Our first stop was the Gwinnett County Airport hangar, which had been turned into a temporary cache for stacks and stacks of Smokey Bear materials.
Our job was simple but essential: unpack, assemble and organize thousands of wildfire prevention giveaways. It was one of those tasks that looks small from the outside but takes a lot of hands and a lot of patience on the inside.
We moved to a location near Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport Oct. 4 to support the rollout of the Rudy Wendelin Smokey Bear art exhibit. This was the centerpiece of the assignment, and our role was to help the Forest Service share Smokey’s message with the constant stream of travelers coming through the airport. We wore our state uniforms and did our best to make sure the exhibit drew the attention it deserved. It’s amazing how many people stop to talk about Smokey Bear, even when they’re sprinting out of ATL.
As drought conditions continued to deepen across northwest Georgia, the Forest Service prepared for a larger prevention push in that region.
Starting October 11, Mike Davis (USFS FMO in GA) shared a list of events and community stops where our help would be needed.
Those plans shifted day by day as conditions changed, but the goal remained the same: reach people before fires start, especially in areas facing elevated risk.
Looking back, the assignment reminded me of what makes prevention work matter. It’s not glamorous. It’s talking to families, answering questions, handing out materials, and helping people understand that one careless ignition can change everything. And when our federal partners needed backup to keep that message moving, South Carolina showed up.