‘Like an Inferno:’ US West Burning at Furious Pace
By MARCIO J. SANCHEZ and BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. (AP) — Wildfires are on a furious pace early this year — from a California hilltop where mansions with multimillion-dollar Pacific Ocean views were torched to remote New Mexico mountains...
Red Bluff (CA) Firefighter, 26, Dies Preparing Prescribed Burn
Wildland firefighter Darin Banks of Red Bluff died Friday when a dead tree fell on him. Banks was assigned to a Type II Initial Attack Hand Crew working to prepare an area for prescribed burning in Tuolumne County, according to Firestorm Wildland Fire Suppression...
Owl With Melted Wing Tips Rescued After Falling from Burning Tree in AZ Wildfire
Helena Wegner - The Charlotte Observer A firefighter was working on a southern Arizona wildfire when he saw burning oak trees in the distance, park officials said. Jason Shafer, a Sierra Vista firefighter, and another crew member headed toward the burning trees on May...
NEWS
‘Like an Inferno:’ US West Burning at Furious Pace
By MARCIO J. SANCHEZ and BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. (AP) — Wildfires are on a furious pace early this year — from a California hilltop where mansions with multimillion-dollar Pacific Ocean views were torched to remote New Mexico mountains...
Red Bluff (CA) Firefighter, 26, Dies Preparing Prescribed Burn
Wildland firefighter Darin Banks of Red Bluff died Friday when a dead tree fell on him. Banks was assigned to a Type II Initial Attack Hand Crew working to prepare an area for prescribed burning in Tuolumne County, according to Firestorm Wildland Fire Suppression...
Owl With Melted Wing Tips Rescued After Falling from Burning Tree in AZ Wildfire
Helena Wegner - The Charlotte Observer A firefighter was working on a southern Arizona wildfire when he saw burning oak trees in the distance, park officials said. Jason Shafer, a Sierra Vista firefighter, and another crew member headed toward the burning trees on May...
New Mexico Fire Costs Top $65M; Closes in on Taos
By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press Many homes near America's largest wildfire survived the latest barrage of howling winds and erratic flames but New Mexico's governor said Tuesday the risk of more destruction is high and that the long-term costs of recovering...
Product News
As Wildfires Become More Prevalent, Fire Safety Industry Looks to the Ground
By Wes Bolsen, Business Director of Wildfire Prevention & Protection at Perimeter Solutions In a new report on wildfire activity, the United Nations says that the number of wildfires that take place around the world could double by the year 2100. Faced with this...
Western Fire Chiefs Association to Host Expanded Second Annual Wildfire Prevention Summit
Virtual event takes place May 3-4, 2022, Features Strong Lineup of Speakers from Federal and State Agencies, Utility, Transportation and Insurance Industries Clayton, MO 5 April 2022 – Following the success of the first event, the Second Annual Wildfire Prevention...
Ember Defense signs Agreement with Perimeter Solutions to Help Protect Homes and Communities from Wildfire in 2022 with PHOS-CHEK® FORTIFY®
Sees PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY as the only durable and trusted long-term fire retardant in the industry for their customers across the Western United States Clayton, MO 23 March 2022 – Perimeter Solutions (NYSE: PRM), a leading global manufacturer of high-quality firefighting...
Perimeter Solutions, Allied Disaster Defense Partner to Protect Property, Lives from Wildfires with PHOS-CHEK® FORTIFY® Long-Term Fire Retardant
Allied to apply PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY to properties in California before expanding throughout Western United States Clayton, MO 2 March 2022 – Perimeter Solutions (NYSE: PRM), a leading global manufacturer of high-quality firefighting products and lubricant additives,...
Mark-3 Testing: Ease of Pull-Start
By Gary Da Silva Product Manager at WATERAX. Expert in market needs and product capability. In a survey on the aspects of the MARK-3® pump that needed improvement, ease of start was the second most requested improvement after weight reduction. Many firefighters...
Wildland Fires
View a full map of active U.S. wildfires and related articles.
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As Wildfires Become More Prevalent, Fire Safety Industry Looks to the Ground
By Wes Bolsen, Business Director of Wildfire Prevention & Protection at Perimeter Solutions In a new report on wildfire activity, the United Nations says that the number of wildfires that take place around the world could double by the year 2100. Faced with this...
Why Phosphate is the Active Ingredient of Choice for Effective Long-Term Fire Retardant
By Melissa Kim Fire safety leaves no room for error, and it doesn’t offer second chances. That is why it is critical that firefighters are equipped with the best tools when they battle any type of fire, including wildfires. Long-term fire retardant has been dropped...
HydraSpear SaberSpear™ 48” Tool Kit
Wildland Firefighting Tool Kits for 2020! Our Jets Make Your Tools Dig Deeper and Faster! ™ 1.SaberSpear™ 48” Tool Kit P/N 54502: A single fixed 48” lightweight steel manifold for ease of storage and mobility in the field. Specifically designed for use...
New International Distribution Agreement Vallfirest x De-Wipe®
The only biodegradable decontaminating wipes able to block the entry of contaminants by the skin Valfirest What is De-Wipe®? The only biodegradable decontaminating wipes on the market capable of removing 99% of the contaminants on the skin and blocking...
Aviation
Pilot Killed Attempting Nighttime Air Drop Fighting Estes Park (CO) Fire
A pilot attempting a first-ever nighttime air drop in Colorado to fight the Kruger Rock wildfire in Estes Park has died. News 9 spoke with the pilot before take off. He was excited to attempt the nighttime drop, after five years of planning, in the hope it would make...
ForestTech Center Launched to Develop Integrated Technology Solutions to Combat Wildfires
The Advanced Mobility Collective Partners with the Colorado Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting to Foster Collaboration Winter Park, Colo. (Nov. 15, 2021) – The Advanced Mobility Collective has launched the first of its kind ForestTech...
Fuel Shortage Could Ground Firefighting Aircraft
By KEITH RIDLER Associated Press BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Airport officials facing jet fuel shortages are concerned they’ll have to wave off planes and helicopters that drop fire retardants during what could be a ferocious wildfire season, potentially endangering...
Two Killed in Plane Crash Responding to AZ Wildfire
WIKIEUP, Ariz. (AP) — Federal authorities on Sunday were at the scene of the crash of a small plane that killed two crew members responding to a wildfire in northwestern Arizona. Both people aboard the Beechcraft King Air C-90 aircraft died in Saturday’s crash. The...
More Help Sought for Montana Wildfires
Firefighting aircraft return to work BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Montana’s firefighting aircraft returned to duty Friday as officials sought even more personnel and aircraft ahead of a shift in the weather that could stir up a large blaze on the Wyoming...
Southern California Receives Two Large Firefighting Helicopters
Boeing Chinook helitankers already at work over Ventura County By AMY TAXIN Associated Press LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. (AP) — Southern California fire agencies are getting two large-scale helicopters that can each carry up to 3,000 gallons (11.356 liters) of...
Videos
Colorado Springs (CO) Fights Multiple Grass Fires, Including One at Airport
Marshall Fire Destroys Hundreds Of Homes In Colorado, Thousands Evacuated
Nearly 600 homes have been destroyed in the Colorado Marshall Fire – along with hotels, shopping centers and businesses. The fire had burned 1,600 acres and was still growing Thursday night.
L.A. County and Forest Service Firefighters Survive Near Miss
On September 11, Angeles National Forest and Los Angeles County firefighters responded to a brush fire near Highway 99. Shortly after they arrived the fire and took hold on both sides of the highway. In the shifting winds the flank of the fire became the head of the...
Meet The Wildland Firefighters of Hawaii – ‘Different But the Same’
https://vimeo.com/651279616 Meet the Hawaii Wildland firefighters. Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural Resources presents this video look at the men and women who are the first responders for the state's 3 million acres of forest land. Like most places, wild fire...
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Bobbie on Fire
Bobbie Scopa started her career as a seasonal firefighter in 1974. After graduating from Arizona State University, she went on to work in fire and natural resource management. Eventually she left the wildand agencies to work full time for a structure fire department. She finished her Masters in Forestry at NC State then went back to the US Forest Service and BLM eventually becoming the Assistant Regional Fire Director in Region 6. Bobbie has spent many years working as a type 1 and 2 Operations Section Chief. You can listen to Bobbie tell audio stories from her long career at BobbieOnFire.com. She has also recently completed her memoir titled “Both Sides Of The Fire Line”. It will be available through Chicago Review Press late summer of 2022.
Burning By The Seat Of My Pants
Back in the 1970s, I had graduated with a degree in Natural Resource Management and had four fire...
Sport Bitching 101: A Practical Guide
When I was a Division Supervisor on a wildland fire, I’d be driving around in my truck, talking to...
Shut Up and Dig: A Forest Service Newbie Learns a First Leadership Lesson
In 1974 I was the newest member of a start up hotshot crew, a Forest Service newbie. Back then we...
Wildland Firefighting
Fire Chief Hospitalized with Burns at NC Wildfire
Mark Price The Charlotte Observer (MCT)A firefighter remains hospitalized after suffering multiple burns during a wildfire in western North Carolina, according to Otto Fire and Rescue in Macon County. The firefighter was identified as department Chief Terry Rholetter...
Review: Decision to Defend Fire Station Nearly Cost Lives in Dolan Fire
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — A firefighting crew's decision to stay and defend its beloved station on California's central coast nearly cost the lives of 14 firefighters who were overrun by flames, according to a report released Friday by an organization that promotes...
Features
‘Unrelenting’ Fire Seasons Putting New Mental Strain on Crews That Fight Fires
Rick Hurd - Bay Area News Group Firefighter Chuck Stark summed up life in the 2020s for crews at the Contra Costa Fire Protection District and throughout the state: “If I could describe it in one word: Unrelenting,” he said. “There used to be an ebb and a flow to...
Wildland Firefighting School Gives Students Real-World Deel for Demands of Battling Wildfires
O'Dell Isaac The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.) Mar. 25—Instructors at the Colorado Wildland Fire and Incident Management Academy took advantage of mild Friday temperatures with an outdoor field day at the campus of University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. The...
