The 2022 Year-End Infographic is out. Take a look. Ponder. Discuss. Then take action on the lessons.
Entrapment
2021 Incident Review Summary
This post is about the 2021 Incident Review Summary - all of the past year's wildland fire incidents summarized in 10 pages.
Protect Yourself
Nobody is expecting the bad thing when it actually happens and it often happens very quickly. This means you are only going to have what you have on when the surprise shows up.
Stories: Why We Need Them and Why They are Never Over
[This article was originally featured in the 2021 Summer Issue of Two More Chains.] By Erik Apland, Field Operations Specialist (Acting), Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center Mark Twain supposedly said: “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” Whether he said this or not, it nevertheless seems absolutely true. I’ve been working on a special … Continue reading Stories: Why We Need Them and Why They are Never Over
He’d Rather You Call Him a ‘Learner’ Not a ‘Survivor’
[This article originally appeared as the “One of Our Own” feature in the 2021 Summer Issue of Two More Chains.] As you’re about to discover, Kip Gray has an important story—and insights and learning—to share with us. This man’s unique perspective helps enrich his stories, his learnings. In 1999, after working on engines on Oregon’s … Continue reading He’d Rather You Call Him a ‘Learner’ Not a ‘Survivor’
7,305 Days Ago, I Learned How to Fight Fire
We had opportunities to make better decisions and we didn’t. How do we process and transfer these lessons? By Thomas R. Taylor Seven thousand three hundred and five days ago I learned how to fight fire. It occurred on one shift and it also took the lives of four young people, one who was a … Continue reading 7,305 Days Ago, I Learned How to Fight Fire
The Lunch Spot
The physical location of the Lunch Spot often coincides with a decision point. It’s commonly a spot offering a safe place to take a tactical pause.
Who Studies Fire Shelters? This Guy
This is an interview with Tony Petrilli, who has served on more than 35 fire entrapment safety review/investigation team assignments.
Rethinking When, Where, and Why We Carry Fire Shelters
While I am not an advocate for eliminating the use of fire shelters, when we understand and train for their proper application and importance, we will be able to move beyond our reliance on shelters when their presence is either unnecessary or dangerous.
Learning from the Bridger Foothills Entrapment and Shelter Deployment
Three members of a helitack crew are overrun by fire inside the meadow that serves as their helispot. Only two of the firefighters have fire shelters.