Hundreds of prospective wildland firefighters gathered in Gleed over the weekend to dig fire lines, learn about fire behavior and experience firsthand what conditions are like while fighting a wildfire. Every year, the Department of Natural Resources hosts wildfire training academies that include multiple firefighting agencies to increase interagency coordination during wildfire season. Grace Debusschere spent the past several days in the classroom — 12 hours a day — learning about weather, methods of fire suppression and the culture and the leadership style of wildland firefighting. “We’re basically applying everything that we’ve been learning in the classroom to the ground,” Debusschere said. The academies offer basic to advanced courses in wildland firefighting skills, which students receive a certificate for upon completion.