CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The state Division of Forestry had a busy 2013.
Division spokeswoman Leslie Smithson said a lot of work took place as usual during the spring and fall burning seasons but also the division helped in the efforts to contain the Smoke Hole wildfire in the Monongahela National Forest in Pendleton County in November.
“We did what we could to help out. Thankfully it wasn’t any larger than it was,” Smithson said.
The Division of Forestry gets a lot of assistance across the state each year from volunteer fire departments. Smithson said that happened again with the Smoke Hole fire.
“We are a small agency and we don’t have a lot of staff but they (VFDs) actually stepped in,” Smithson said. “They are the backbone of firefighting in West Virginia.”