Meet the firefighters fighting the wildfires across Mass.

Local news

Massachusetts saw at least 186 wildfires in October alone.

As wildfires have ignited across Massachusetts in recent days, firefighters have been working around the clock to extinguish the flames.

In an average year, Massachusetts reports fewer than 20 wildfires in October, state fire marshal spokesman Jake Wark told Boston.com.

In October, the state had at least 186.

“That’s a staggering increase, especially when you consider that the usual fire season is in the spring, from March to May,” Wark said.

“These fires will burn emissions, and that’s what causes challenging control issues for firefighters trying to suppress them,” Dave Celino, chief fire chief for the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, told Boston.com. “That’s why we’re going to see events of longer duration.”

As of Wednesday night, there were nine active wildfire incidents in Massachusetts, according to a DCR briefing — in Salem, Middleton, Canton, Devens, Wilmington, Holden and North Andover.

The fire department said the state faces an increased risk of brush fires. As of Wednesday night, there had been 120 brush fires reported across Massachusetts, totaling about 450 acres, just in the last few days, Wark said.

‘Physically demanding’

Even after showering twice, Salem Fire Lt. Ryan Riley said he still “smelled like a campfire” after working in the field to fight the Salem wildfires, which burned over a hundred acres this week — so large that many people across the country region reported smelling the smoke.

“Wildfires are extremely dangerous, and if you don’t have your head on a swivel, you can quickly find yourself in a very dangerous situation,” he told Boston.com. “The fire spreads both over our heads and under our feet without even giving us a warning.”

Riley said fighting a wildfire is a challenge both “physically and mentally” for a team of structural firefighters who are used to putting out structure fires.

“It’s a different ball game out there,” he said.

The equipment firefighters carry weighs anywhere from 50 to 175 pounds, Riley said.

“It’s physically demanding out there in our bunker gear because it’s designed to protect us from the heat inside buildings, not necessarily great for trudging through the leaves and woods,” he said.

Meet the fire

Salem Firefighter Sean Hebert said wildland fires tend to “move fast.”

“The fire could be taller than you,” he told Boston.com. “It’s a pretty wild place.”

To stop the fire, crews are pumping water into the ground at 100 gallons per minute in an effort to dig out the fire, Saugus Fire Captain Billy Cross told Boston.com.

“There’s no easy way or clean way to do it,” he said. “It’s just really dirty work.”

Beverly Fire Chief Peter O’Connor described the work as “frustrating” at times.

“The fire is burning underground, and when you get a part out, it will appear maybe 100 feet away,” he told Boston.com. “But part of the job is you just have to get it done.”

Wark said weather conditions have played a “significant role” in this week’s fire activity.

“It’s fall, with dead leaves and vegetation providing a significant amount of soil fuel,” he said. “We’ve had an unusually dry season with very little rainfall, so these fuels are very susceptible to ignition.”

The recent high temperatures, low humidity and breezy conditions have all contributed to the elevated fire risks, Wark said. Almost all outdoor fires start with human activity such as outdoor cooking, unattended campfires or electrical equipment, he said, that can ignite dry vegetation.

Long hours

Many of the Salem firefighters worked extra hours during the week, Hebert said.

Salem’s firefighters typically work 24 hours on call, then 24 hours off.

Hebert said he worked another 14 hours — meaning he worked for 38 straight hours.

“There’s not a lot of sleeping going on at the firehouse as it is,” said Riley, who is also president of the Salem Massachusetts Firefighters Local 172 union. “We’ve had a lot of people go above and beyond.”

Many crews from outside communities came in to help the effort at high-need locations beyond their normal business hours, said O’Connor, the Beverly chief.

“It’s a lot for someone to do, especially if you travel an hour in the morning, travel an hour to get home at night and then come back the next morning early to do it again,” he said.

O’Connor said most of the firefighters have “worked hours on end.”

“It’s dirty, they’re tired, they’re hungry, they just want to rest,” he said. “But they know the mission is to get the fire out.”