Steve Shaw, BLM Fire Branch Chief of Preparedness and Suppression Support, talks about his wildland fire management journey starting on an engine crew in Montana, to hotshot in California, fire management in Arizona, and currently supervising the preparedness and suppression support program for BLM Fire at the National Interagency Fire Center in Idaho - the program that provides the logistics and communications that firefighters need to get their job done. We discuss the in-and-outs of being an incident commander (IC) and the importance of mentors in your career. Steve provides insight into some challenges we face for the future, is encouraged by changes we are making, and offers some advice for people getting into the profession of wildland fire management.

In the 49th state, wildfire suppression is a bit different than in the Lower 48. This second episode dedicated to the Alaska Fire Service (AFS) featuring Ray Crowe, A.J. Gavin, and Ryan McPherson, focuses on wildfire suppression operations in the Land of the Midnight Sun. Ray Crowe, Acting Branch Chief of Fire Operations and Alaska Native, talks about his career with AFS and the specialized positions used to fight wildfires in Alaska. Beginning on the BLM AFS's training crew, the North Star fire crew, Ray talks about working his way up to Alaska Interagency Coordination Center Manager, challenging himself personally and professionally. Smokejumper A.J. Gavin discusses the complexities of fire suppression in Alaska from the essential paracargo and boat programs for firefighter support to the use of the customized tool called the “beater” to extinguish tundra fires. Ryan McPherson, Aviation Management Specialist, talks about his career flight path along with the challenges and importance of aviation use in Alaska. Being an “air attack,” requires flexibility to coordinate air space over wildland fires, manage radio communication with multiple aircraft and firefighters, and perform aerial reconnaissance of the overall fire situation in a vast landscape. In all, Alaska Fire Service is a small, complex organization working within a tight knit community. Learn more about AFS at blm.gov/alaskafireservice.  Full link if you can add it in: https://www.blm.gov/programs/fire-and-aviation/regional-info/alaska-fire-service

The BLM Alaska Fire Service (AFS) was created in 1982 to provide efficient and cost-effective fire suppression services for all U.S. Department of the Interior and Native lands and assists those entities with other fire management activities. In this two-part series, six AFS employees talk about how they got into wildland fire management, what they do now, and what they like most about working for AFS. Kent Slaughter, Deputy State Director of Fire and Aviation, kick starts this episode with a little history of AFS explaining how BLM manages wildfires for the state along with some challenges and successes he has witnessed in his career. Tasha Shields, Tanana Zone Fuels Specialist, explains the Fire Specialist position, unique to AFS, and her move to fuels management. She talks about the importance of logistics and what it is like to work on wildfires in Alaska including how to build a tundra "refrigerator." The episode wraps up with Bjorn Burgeson, Upper Yukon Zone Wildland Fire Operations Technician, providing his perspective as a new employee of AFS, but not new to wildland fire. He offers insight on building a wildfire career, the importance of the people you work with, and taking care of yourself and each other.

Katrina Arguello, BLM engine crew member working in Las Cruces, New Mexico, talks about transitioning from the military to wildland fire. A veteran of the Marine Corps, she spent her first year fighting fires as a member of the BLM Spokane Initial Attack Suppression Module Fire Crew 6201. Now beginning her second year of firefighting, Katrina is finding out what it is like to work on a wildland fire engine. She describes her background, training, and first year of wildfire suppression experience while raising a child and pursuing a horticulture degree. Katrina also offers advice to service members looking for work. Feeling a sense of doing something meaningful, Katrina is looking forward to more career opportunities in wildland fire.

Matthew Norden, BLM Honor Guard Coordinator, explains how he got involved with the BLM Honor Guard, what they do, who they serve, and why it is an important program for all firefighters. Matt offers some history, discusses the services the Honor Guard provides, and explains how BLM employees can become members along with the training and commitment involved. The BLM Honor Guard is a team of current fire personnel who have chosen to honor and pay tribute to the lives of those who make the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. Team members participate in fire service memorials, ceremonial presentations, and special events such as the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend being held this year on May 6-7, 2023.

BLM National Medical Director Dr. Andrew Southard, or Dr. Drew, talks about the Operational Medical Support Program (OMSP) which provides emergency medical services that focus on initial stabilization and extraction of injured employees in the wildland environment. Dr. Drew discusses the similarities and differences between OMSP and Emergency Medical Services (EMS), when OMSP was developed, and why it is an important program for our wildland firefighters. He reveals his fire background leading to BLM National Medical Director and how BLM employees can get involved with the program.

Katie Wood, Program Manager for the National Wildfire Coordinating Group or NWCG, discusses what NWCG does and how this group operates. Katie begins the session by taking about her career, from being hired right out of high school as firefighter on an engine crew to working her way to up to the National Interagency Fire Center as the NWCG Program Manager. Katie then explains how NWCG got started and how it provides national leadership to enable interoperable wildland fire operations among federal, state, local, Tribal, and territorial partners. From establishing national interagency wildland fire operational standards, to NWCG committees’ operations, to developing incident training, Katie explains the role of NWCG at the national level and how NWCG uses a consensus-based decision process to develop common operating standards for the wildland fire community. As wildland fire continues to expand and become more complex, NWCG is at the tip of the spear working on an integrated incident performance and training modernization training project; an effort focused on modernizing the majority of NWCG's incident positions to include their training, incident position descriptions, development of new position standards, and next-generation position task books along with transitioning to complex incident management to better facilitate participation and increase capacity for the nation’s wildland fire response. To learn more about NWCG you can visit them at https://www.nwcg.gov/ This podcast was recorded at SB Studios and distributed and produced by SB Studios, if you or anyone you know is looking to launch or grow their podcast send them our way and mention Wildlife matters for special discounts and pricing. Visit SB Studios at https://www.sbstudios.co/ for more information

Kelly Woods, Director of the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center (LLC), talks about her interagency career in wildland fire beginning as a GS-1 wildland firefighter on a type 2 hand crew, working various suppression and support jobs with different agencies, to her current position as director of the Wildland Fire LLC.  We discuss the development of the center, the mission to facilitate learning from our experiences - good and bad, and the importance of emotional learning from past events through staff rides. We can become more professional, efficient, and safer at what we do through inquiry, opportunity, and dialogue. Kelly also takes a moment to reflect on being a mother while navigating her wildland fire management career.  Listen to the Wildland Fire LLC podcast and follow on social media: Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/wildfirelessonslearned and Twitter @WildlandFireLLC.

BLM Wildland Fire Investigator and Trespass Coordinator Court Gossard talks about his transition from the military to working in wildland fire. We discuss the importance of fire investigation - from examination and documentation to types of causes and what fire trespass involves…along with a little reminiscing. Court also provides advise to veterans looking for work in wildland fire management.

BLM Fire Deputy Division Chief of Aviation Mike Reid talks about the various types of aviation assets working in wildland fire management. Beginning his firefighting career on ground crews to taking flight in helicopters working on helitack, Mike explains how he became a firefighter, the different positions available in aviation and how aircraft is used to support the suppression efforts of the boots on the ground. He reminds us aircraft are not just a tail numbers, there are people on board and that private citizens flying unauthorized drones near wildfires put those people and our fireline personnel at risk. #KnowBeforeYouFly