Growth from the ashes of Yarnell occurred on many fronts in many individual lives. In most cases, preceded by dark days and deep despair. Not everyone made it out of the hopelessness. But as a community, can we claim any sort of cultural catharsis? I submit that we can.
Risk Management
Podcast – Lessons from 2022
Listen in to discover new information, action you can take, and nuances to facilitate learning in the wildland fire service.
Stuff You Should Have
You should let the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center prioritize your shopping list. We have the data.
Lessons from 2022: AEDs
Knowing where to find your AED, how and when to use it, and how to store and maintain it are critical. Much like with a fire extinguisher, an AED must be maintained, batteries checked, and people must be trained in its use.
2022 Incident Review Summary
Use these 10 pages to spur discussions during your Annual Fire Refresher.
Insights on Learning from the Redding Hotshot Crew Superintendent
The culmination of our crew’s training is the South Canyon Staff Ride. That’s where a lot of tremendous lessons are learned up on that hill during this Staff Ride experience.
Insights on “Bias” and “Diversity”
I think that a community of people have to mutually agree and respect each other’s differences and have that painful conflict that comes with diversity. I think we can do that respectfully. We’re going to have to accomplish this sooner than later because, for lots of reasons, we’re getting to a place where it’s not sustainable to continue doing things the way that we have been.
Promoting a Prescribed Fire Workforce
It’s clear that our firefighters are spending more and more time away from their home units, engaged in difficult and extended fire assignments, and have very little time to also be responsible for implementing the needed prescribed fires back home . . . Every reason for not burning can be overcome when you have a workforce who is dedicated to getting it accomplished. This isn’t magic. It’s how all work gets done. You make it the priority duty for that work team or group of employees . . . In this way, we can start to reduce the risk to our future workforce.
Is Our Safety Messaging Making Us Less Safe?
If we agree that our goal is to bring folks home unharmed, but we work in an inherently hazardous environment, what is the most effective messaging to ensure intent is understood and achievable?
The Illusion of Control — Ready to tip some sacred cows?
We are not in control of the elements influencing fire, we are not in control of the other humans influencing our situation, and we are not even in control of our own perception of what the situation is. In spite of all this uncertainty, as we step into this dynamic and complex environment, we convince ourselves we are in control of our own safety.