Those out of work have a chance to earn some extra cash during these dry times.

According to a news release from the Ministry of Forests and Range, the provincial government will be paying up to 750 unemployed people $15 per hour to take wildfire suppression training.

The two-day comprehensive course gives applicants the S-100 Basic Fire Suppression and Safety certificate needed to provide support during wildfire situations.

These Type 3 firefighters are expected to understand the difficult working conditions of wildfire suppression, and be in good physical health.

“The fire season has hit harder and earlier than average and our fire crews have been working extremely hard to put the flames out,” said Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell. “We’re taking an opportunity to be proactive and provide unemployed workers with the skills to help fight fires should we face the need in the coming months.”

The training involves one day of classroom work and second day in the field working with pumps, hoses and other equipment.

The course is seen as the minimum training a person would need to fight wildfires in British Columbia.

Type 3 firefighters are hired each year to patrol on the ground, mop up after fires, break down camps and provide support. A physically demanding and potentially dangerous job, wildfire fighting involves long hours. Typical deployments can run up to two weeks of 12-hour shifts.

The demand for Type 3 firefighters varies according to the level of fire activity in the province.

They are typically brought in after all available firefighters with higher levels of training are already on-scene. The last time a large group of emergency wildfire fighters were trained by Wildfire Management was in 2003. Most of the firefighters were from the Canadian Armed Forces.

Training sessions are tentatively scheduled to take place in Kelowna and Vernon, with dates to be announced.

Those interested in taking the course can register through www.bcwildfire.ca.