LA GRANDE Ore. (KPTV) - Oregon’s wildfire season means all hands on deck. Firefighters of all different backgrounds join the front lines - sometimes, it’s incarcerated youth fighting the flames, choosing to learn a career and help the community.

“Everything always goes back to Riverbend,” said Carson McDowell, a forest technician with the Oregon Department of Forestry. He’s in his 11th fire season and counting.

Riverbend is a vocational education camp in La Grande where older youth in detention choose to learn a career. It’s known for its fire crew, established in 2011.

“We are the real deal,” said educator Rick Snyder. “We’re not a watered-down version, we’re a real firefighting crew.”

Working with the state and contractors gives the young crew real experience.

“Every fire’s differen

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