The Hotshot Wake Up

On Today’s Show: To Subscribe and Support https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ The Wildfire Technology Summit takes place next week in Salt Lake City, Utah, where wildfire leaders, operational subject matter experts, and technology companies will come together to discuss capabilities, systems, and requirements in the wildfire space. It is not a traditional tech trade show, but a 4 day event to b...

On today’s show: To Support and Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ A few weeks ago, a letter went out to wildfire agency heads from the Alliance of Retired Forest Service Fire Leaders, advocating for the unification of our nation's wildland firefighters. That letter can be found here . I reached out, and the Alliance Chair, Dan Kleinman, agreed to a conversation about the Allian...

On Today’s Show: To Support and Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ The Director of the Wildland Fire Service, Chief Brian Fennessy, started in his inaugural position just 9 months ago, but there is plenty to talk about. We chat about the busy wildfire season, the workforce, and what lies ahead. We dive into budgets, unification, aviation, contracting, the differences between wildfir...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ 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 exper...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ 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...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ 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 wi...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ 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 th...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ 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 Kai...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Full report released for the Lyons Ferry Fire burnover. Comprehensive report details firefighters trying to burn off around themselves before being overtaken by fire. Tens of thousands of acres of fuels treatment and wildfire mitigation projects were halted in Oregon due to environmental lawsuits. Groups sued Mt. Hoo...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: 👇https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Today, Jon Freeman (USWFS) and Matt Lynde (USFS) join the show to discuss everything about wildfire aviation supervision and coordination, and, if you are interested, how to become one. This is a big-picture job, and as they describe, the best job in the industry. As an aviation supervisor, you are basically a flyi...

On Today’s Show: To support and subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Three wildfires have crossed the international border of Canada and Minnesota, and hundreds of thousands of acres have burned. 183 new starts across Ontario are expected to burn for weeks. Wildfire smoke will blanket the eastern United States as poor air quality records are already being set. More Minnesota fires mer...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ New wildfires are popping up in the Pacific Northwest and California. Southern California moves to a Preparedness Level 3. A lot of progress is being made on wildfires across Colorado, Utah, and the Southwest as containment rises. Containment drops on the Gold Mountain Fire in Colorado as a civilian drone shuts down...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ A full operational update of all fires across the nation. Colorado fires expect extreme fire behavior again today. Red flag conditions continue across much of the Region. Progress is being made on most of the fires across Utah and the Southwest. A breakdown of year-to-date wildfire numbers in Utah compared to last ye...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Colorado has declared a State of Emergency due to the wildfires actively burning across the State. The National Preparedness Level moves to 4. Updates from the USWFS and Forest Service on the burnover event on the Knowles Fire. Wildfires continue to make large runs across Utah. The Pocket Fire in Arizona increases to...

On Today’s Show: To support and subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service, along with the Department of the Interior, today announced new steps to reduce hazardous exposure for federal wildland firefighters. These actions include expanded access to N95 respirators on the fireline, required training, and standardized decontamination protoc...

On Today’s Show: To support and subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ The Hotshot Wake Up is 100% supported by the readers and listeners. Thank you. The National Preparedness Level increases to a PL3 Wildfire bust across much of the West. Full operational update. Human remains found after the Upriver Fire in Spokane. Sheriff reports individuals refused to evacuate. Incendiary devices w...

On Today’s Show: 100% listener and reader supported. To Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Full operational update. New fires in Colorado, Utah, California, and the Southwest. The Forest Service has reinstated early retirement incentives as part of the reorganization plan. Both VERA and VSIP options are being offered. High level operators from the Forest Service have started to acce...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: 👉https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Today, I talk to Derrick Holdstock, owner and operator of Western Fire Resources. Derrick has been very proactive in the contracting and wildfire world, recently returning from a trip to D.C. Before he started Western Fire Resources, Derrick was a wildlife biologist who practiced prescribed fire and later served as...

On Today’s Show: To Support and Subscribe 👉https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ The Sandy Fire in California is an early season wake up for the State. Urban interface fires will only increase, and fuel mitigation is a major step that residents and the state need to take seriously. A conversation about the harsh reality of the changing conditions, the wildland urban interface, and the pre-fire w...

On Today’s Show: To Subscribe and Support:👉 https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Full operational update. Hotshot crews are still having issues securing the vehicles they need to operate at the level they are being asked to. Reports of dozens of Type 3 Engines that remain unstaffed. Canada cancels $106M wildfire satellite contract with American company. Trade war actions leaking into wildfire?...

On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe 👉https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Full wildfire update Fires in Georgia, Florida, New Mexico, and Montana USDA Secretary Rollins provides the 2026 wildfire secretarial memo. It covers priorities for the 2026 fire season and directives for the Forest Service moving forward. I go over the priorities, including initial attack, surge capacity, secondary...

On today’s show: To Support And Subscribe: 👉https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Full operational update of all wildfires. The causes of the Georgia wildfires have been announced: the Highway 82 fire was caused by a birthday balloon, and the other by someone welding. There was a firefighter who died after responding to a Florida fire. Updates from Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, and the Southw...

On Today’s show: To subscribe and support: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/👉 I cover the wildfire technology summits I attended in both Nevada and Boise. I sit down with Chief Mark Niemeyer to discuss what the Western Fire Chiefs Association is doing to bring together Agencies, wildland firefighters, and technology companies to facilitate a proactive approach to tech adoption in the wildfir...

On Today’s Show: To Support and Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Today, the Forest Service officially announced its reorganization plans. I interviewed Deputy Chief of Fire and Aviation Management, Sarah Fisher, and Associate Chief of the Forest Service, Chris French, to get the details of the plan. There is a lot that is taking place, including the relocation of the Forest Servic...

On Today’s Show: To Support and Subscribe: https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ It was revealed in court documents this week that a helicopter pilot tried to take down a hobby drone over a wildfire with bucket drops. The pilot was between drops, protecting homes, when he spotted the drone. The judge in the case fined the drone operator $5K, well below the recommended amount, set forth in the Wil...