DRYDEN, Ont. — Ten days before she boards a flight for Australia, Kendra Saville is already scrutinizing a poster with pictures of the poisonous snakes and spiders she'll need to watch out for.
Saville is a Fire Intelligence Officer at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry's fire management centre in Dryden.
The poster was included in briefing materials she received after she was chosen for the ministry crew responding to Australia's request for Canadian assistance during its current bushfire emergency.
"We are provided with a bunch of documents to read, get the lay of the land, a couple of maps, different operating procedures that I need to become familiar with. So I'm reading up on that," Saville told Tbnewswatch in an interview Tuesday.
She's giving "extra special attention," she noted, to the snakes and spiders.
Unlike some other MNRF personnel who are already in Australia, Saville will be able to spend the holidays with family before leaving home on Jan. 3.
She'll be away for more than five weeks.
"I couldn't believe my name had been called. I was so excited," she said.
Saville is glad to get the opportunity to repay the service that Australian firefighters provided to Canada during British Columbia's forest fire emergency in 2009.
She was also assigned to BC at that time, and worked with some Aussie and New Zealand crews.
"This is my chance to give back to them," she said.
Saville is well aware of the severity of the situation she's about to get into.
"I think I'll see some of the worst fire behaviour I've ever experienced....It's daunting in the respect that it's all new territory," she said.
Saville noted that it will be very different from northwestern Ontario.
"I'm learning the topography, I'm learning everything on the fly when I'm down there. It's already really bad. They're losing homes, they're losing whole communities, and sadly, there's been a loss of life."
Saville expects to be assigned the functions she specializes in, which help to predict fire behaviour.
"Basically, throughout the day we're gathering the weather information, fire behaviour information, a lot of data collection, and providing that information to the duty officers so they can make the most well-informed decisions on where to place resources, and whether they need to move those resources before they get in trouble," she explained.
If required, however, she'll be able to take on other duties she's trained to do as well.
"It's a heavy burden. You go in doing the best you can, and you just help wherever you can," Saville said.
To date, Ontario has deployed nine MNRF staff to Australia, including three from the Northwest Region.
They're all filling roles in logistics, operations and fire behaviour.
Nine more ministry personnel, including six from the Northwest Region, are scheduled for deployment next week with duties in aviation, planning and operations.
