A Field-Guide to DIY Wildfire Preparedness and Defense in Rural Communities
A practical wildfire preparedness playbook for acreage owners, ranchers, and rural communities focused on how to be prepared to safely take early action that can keep small fires from becoming major incidents.
Part memoir, part field manual, Renegade Fire Brigade tells the story of how the community of Knutsford, BC went from zero wildfire preparedness in 2021 to working cooperatively with BC Wildfire Service during the Rossmore Lake Fire in 2023, and in so doing defined the model for what would become the Province's Cooperative Community Wildfire Response program.
It’s written in plain language, shaped by hard won experience, and focused on what actually moves the needle: preparation, coordination, and the discipline to know when it’s time to leave, knowing you had truly done everything you could have.
About
Hey, I'm James.
I started writing this as a guide in 2021 when our community faced a number of wildfire threats for which we were ill-prepared. Over the following couple of years, it grew from a Facebook thread to a crew of trained community members working as a team.
When we had a major wildfire event in our backyard in 2023 we were ready for it, and because of this BC Wildfire went out on a limb to let our crew of trained volunteers stay and help fight.
From that success came a policy change at a Provincial level, a framework that would allow community groups like ours to work alongside BC Wildfire Service crews under specific circumstances.
This book covers what we did, how we did it, what worked, and what didn’t — so your community can avoid wasting time and money fumbling around trying to reinvent the wheel.
This book is not meant to replace real training. It’s meant to get you started on the right footing.
Free E-Book PDF Download
I’m offering the complete, unabriged PDF version of the book as a free download because rural wildfire preparedness shouldn’t be paywalled. It is my hope that by sharing our community's experience, other communities can develop their own response strategies and make the whole province a safer place.
If this information helps one family, one crew, one community make better decisions, then it’s worth it.
As well, wildfire isn't exactly a problem that is limited to BC, and the information provided is largely relevant the world over, so hopefully it makes its way to distant shores and helps our cousins there. We're all on this rock together.
If you want to support the work, you can buy the paperback or leave me a tip through BuyMeACoffee — but the PDF stays free.
Terms: You’re welcome to share the PDF with friends, neighbours, and your local community. Resale is prohibited. Please don’t bundle it into paid products, or host it behind a paywall. It is preferred that if you are going to share it you do so by using the link to this site so I can keep track of how many copies are downloaded. Copyright remains with James Bethell.
Table of Contents
BACKGROUND AND OUR STORY
Disclaimer – 13
Who This Book Is For – 16
How To Use This Book – 21
How It Started For Me – 23
How It Started For Us – 25
You're On Your Own – 31
Why To Stay and When To Go – 35
BUILDING YOUR TEAM
Incipient Organization – 42
Preparedness Committee – 48
Forming a Not For Profit Society – 52
Initial Response Team – 59
Chain of Command – 66
After Action Reviews – 71
Fundraising – 74
Interacting in The Community – 78
The Importance of Fitness – 80
APARATUS AND EQUIPMENT
Personal Protective Equipment – 85
Hand Tools – 96
Buying A Firetruck – 101
Building a Redneck Firetruck – 106
Building a Fire Trailer – 121
Building a Strucutre Protection Unit – 123
TECHNOLOGY
A Note on Technology – 128
Phone Apps – 130
Drones / UAV – 143
Social Media – 146
Maps & GIS – 151
Website – 155
COMMUNICATIONS
Legalities – 158
Comms – 160
Cellular – 161
Satellite Uplinks – 165
Two Way Radio – 168
Frequencies – 170
Portable VS Mobile – 180
Mobile Radios – 182
Portable Radios – 193
Communicating by Radio – 197
Baofeng Usage – 201
External Mics and Speakers – 206
Range and Repeaters – 207
TECHNIQUE
A Primer on Technique – 211
FireSmart is Actually Your Best Defense – 219
About The Weather – 229
Fire Behavior – 236
Fire Fighting – 240
Pump Operation and Staging – 251
Fire Entrapment Avoidance – 258
Surviving Field Entrapment – 268
Surviving Vehicle Entrapment – 272
Surviving Homestead Entrapment – 275
Vehicle and Structure Fires – 280
Mop Up – 288
First Aid – 292
Incident Command – 293
Night Ops – 296
Facebook Posts – 300
July 3, 2021 – 301
August 3, 2023 – 303
September 13, 2023 – 309
RESOURCES
Glossary Of Terms – 312
S-Series Courses – 320
Society Constitution and Bylaws – 321
FRS/GMRS Frequencies – 329
Tactical Plan – 330
Contact
Questions, bulk local orders, or community presentations: james@renegadefirebrigade.com