The Hotshot Wake Up

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Frustrations have boiled over within the Forest Service as fire supervisors voice concerns about Agency direction, poor facilities, experienced firefighters leaving the ranks, and infighting with line officers.
Wildland firefighter entrapments have hit a 20 year record this season, raising further concern about experience levels in middle management. Unease remains about what the future will look like, and there is urgency to “rip the band-aid off” on plans for Agency change. I cover their concerns as they see it.
This is the time for professionals on all levels of the Agency to come together and solve these issues, which ultimately affect the boots on the ground the most. Sometimes voicing these concerns is what it takes for everyone to sit at the table and figure out how to move forward.
Change isn't simple, and this isn't an easy situation for anyone involved, but cooler heads must prevail.

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Putting out wildfires is hard enough, but the constant tit for tat political grandstanding is wearing on the workforce. I express what I’ve been hearing from the boots on the ground. A classic rant.

The Hawk Fire in Nevada announced a fatality this morning. A woman who sustained injuries during the initial day of the fire has passed away.

The Nation remains at a PL5, and we are one lightning bust away from all out chaos again. Full operational update.

BC wildfire says civilians are stealing their equipment used to protect homes. Alberta wildfire charged over the death of a wildland firefighter on the Jasper Fire.

UTV rollover report. Passenger ejected at 30MPH.

Plus more.

THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.

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I sat down with Montana Senator Tim Sheehy to discuss the current wildfire situation across the American West. Congress recently held a bipartisan meeting to talk about the fires burning in multiple regions, the devastation in Spokane, Washington, and the need for wildland firefighter support.
I ask if this season will be a reckoning for the wildfire system, Congress, and the public, with the amount of fire currently on the ground and the tragic loss so far this year. What happens in these congressional wildfire meetings? Why does it always seem like things are delayed, or remain unchanged?
What can be done to better support the boots on the ground, and will we have wildfire amnesia again once the season comes to a close? The Senator addresses all these questions, and more. As you know, Senator Sheehy didn’t hold back. https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/
THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.

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Today I welcome the Director of the United States Wildland Fire Service, Chief Brian Fennessy. As we all know, it’s been very busy up until this point, and there is lots to cover.
We discuss the unification of the Department of the Interior wildland firefighters and what that looks like moving forward. Who will do the landscape work? Do we have enough firefighters and resources?
We have a conversation about initial attack, full suppression, safety, and the current fire conditions on the ground. Chief Fennessy addresses the many misconceptions about how wildland firefighters operate, and how policy is based on current and expected conditions on the ground. Could the full suppression strategy change if conditions change? Of course.
We also dive into modernizing the workforce; this includes not only using new tech, but also updating the aging comms network and dispatch communication network.
Plenty to talk about.
THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.

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The Great Basin moves to a PL5, and the Widemouth 2 Fire nears 100K acres. Full National wildfire update.

A report about a line medic who made unconventional decisions that led to life-saving measures for a wildland firefighter in Idaho.

Reports on the Coleman Creek entrapment in Oregon, the dozer burnover on the Kaiser Canyon Fire in Washington, the Dozer rollover on the Gann Fire in California, and the tender rollover in Idaho.

Deputy Chief Sarah Fisher’s statement on the feasibility study to combine firefighters from the Forest Service into the USWFS.

Update on the Seven Cabins Fire in New Mexico. As I reported in May, the airplane crash that started the fire happened inside a military GPS jamming testing zone. New details confirm that military operations likely brought down the plane.

Full story of the fake paramedic on the Elk Fire in Colorado. It reads like a Tom Clancy novel.

Plus more.

THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.