By April DeJarlais

University of Montana, Missoula
After college students left their campuses for the summer, many of them suffered the consequences of the brutal recession. Jobs were hard to find and hours were cut back. In Montana, forest fires were also scarce, which created a unique set of problems for University of Montana students.
Student firefighters in the Lolo National Forest took a major hit to their wallets this summer because of an unusually high rainfall.

Mother Nature gave the poor students a meager 140 fires (instead of the usual 200), costing the students thousands of dollars in wages. This was particularly bad news for college students because, while some temporary firefighters can make up a bad season by transferring to fire-heavy regions, students don’t have that option.

“I pretty much rely on that money for school and living throughout the year,” University of Montana student Jesse Spaulding told the university’s newspaper, “But this year I’ll probably have to get a second job.