At its peak, the Lee and Elk fire had 1,100 to 1,200 men and women working. When a Complex Incident Management Team is assigned to a fire, they arrive as a completely self-contained unit. Tents, sanitary facilities, shower facilities, refrigerated food supply trucks, a saw sharpening shop, and a mobile mechanic shop.
A catering company is contracted to feed this army of wildland firefighters. The caterer brings in several semi-trailers which prepares food each day from scratch. Smoke Jumpers and other personnel working in remote areas of the incident, may be thrown into the field with MRE packets or Meals Ready to Eat developed by the military for function rather than gourmet. But most meals are prepared by professional chefs. Firefighters burn vast amounts of calories (pun intended) and appreciate a hearty hot meal.
As early as 11 p.m. the night before, chefs begin to prepare the next day’s breakfast to be served at 0500-0900. The kitchen is in operation 24/7 serving meals for one to three shifts. There is an old saying, “An Army marches on its stomach.” Wildland firefighters are no different. Proper food service is just as important as a chainsaw to the effort. Dinner menus are made up of a two-week rotation of main courses. Meals include steak and mashed potatoes; jambalaya; chicken, pork loin, macaroni, Kung Pao chicken, or taco night. Vegetarian options are also made available. The main camps have cafeteria lines, while outlying camps may have food delivered by special hot trucks loaded at 4 a.m. and served by camp crews, who are often young workers who are beginning their career in wildfire. trainees. Catering companies must meet the stringent requirements of a multi-page manual. Safe food practices, nutritional value, and menus are all monitored by Food Unit Leaders like Anne C. from Ohio and David T. from Atlanta who serve as liaisons between the caterers and the CIMT. The manual requires that a catering kitchen be capable of serving 350 meals an hour. The total meal and snack plan averages 4,500 calories for a firefighter every day! That is more than double that of an average Disney World guest.
Many less active support-staff order a “Happy Meal” with half portions. Chef Austin from Texas told me that his personal record was 2,200 meals on a very long day. When the Lee Fire was winding down, a smaller crew working under the FDNY Incident Team was fed by our one and only Ma Famiglia’s Restaurant. They worked long hours to provide three meals a day for a crew of 220. All the firefighters were complimentary about the quality of Meeker cuisine. One New York City fireman said the meatballs were better than his Italian mother ever made at home.
By ED PECK
