Meet the people supporting the Ferguson Fire crews

MARIPOSA COUNTY (KFSN) -- During major fires crews need a base camp, a place to get some shut eye and eat. These "incident command centers" are essentially villages.

One of the people you will meet at the Ferguson Fire incident command center is Jackie Neith.

"I came up from New Mexico about three days ago from another fire down there."

Neith is not a firefighter; she manages the on-site mobile laundry and shower units.

She says, "It is another way to help without getting directly involved in the firefighting."

Each employee works 12-hours shifts, making sure firefighters coming off the front lines have a place to freshen up.

Neith says, "They are tired, they are dirty, they just want to eat, they want to shower, and they want clean clothes to put on the following day."

As the firefighters go back out to do battle with the flames, others are at the base planning the attack, strategically determining how to contain this fire as well as getting info to the public.

That's where Amanda Greene with Fire Dawg comes in, she helps print out all the maps, and fire information crews will need.

"The incident action plans are what they are called, we call it the IAP for short, but it just tells the guys where they need to be on the fire, the radio frequencies, what the weather is going to be like that day and if there is a medical emergency what they need to do."

Each day she prints hundreds of documents, thousands of pieces of paper.

Both Neith and Greene have been away from their family all summer on different fires.

But both say it's worth it.

"It's just enjoyable," says Neith. "It truly is. It's a type of rewarding that I can't put it into words."