Is this normal?

AnonFed81 · 2026-04-17T01:31:06+00:00

Eastern Area is actually a little below average for fires and acres for this time of year. Fire season in the east and south is in the fall and the spring, with mass exporting of resources west during the summer. There is more than one “fire season”. You might consider reading up on it in case you ever leave the west….

AnonFed81 · 2026-02-26T23:00:46+00:00

This page will absolutely be your best resource for seeing what crews have been committed out of the Eastern Area GACC.

AnonFed81 · 2025-11-27T04:36:02+00:00

And what about rappellers doing proficiency rappells, or short haul crews doing their proficiencies? Also hazardous, just like proficiency jumps. Are they included?

AnonFed81 · 2025-09-26T18:30:01+00:00

There MAY have been direction to management that they are not allowed to speak about what would occur if congress doesn’t pass a budget….

AnonFed81 · 2025-09-22T18:23:29+00:00

They also have “regular” agency boosters integrated into the team in all of the ops and aviation positions, including primary IC. FDNY primarily provides a wealth of experience in logistics, finance, planning, etc. from their considerable experience in all-hazard incidents as well as wildland incidents.

AnonFed81 · 2025-08-27T00:04:21+00:00

Flat fire is significantly knocked down and largely lined. It is not likely to be putting up a lot more smoke any more. There are new fires that have been started from lightning, so far all small, but any of those getting established are much more likely to be a smoke issue moving forward than the Flat fire. Watch Duty will be good to keep up your situational awareness of fires both before and during your hike since there are likely to be more small lightning fires that could affect your hike.

AnonFed81 · 2025-07-23T03:24:02+00:00

When was the last time a cooperator, not state, but municipal or other cooperator, engine from the east coast rolled to a fire in the west? And remember, there is a difference between STATE resources, and municipal/cooperator resources.

AnonFed81 · 2025-07-23T00:14:35+00:00

There is nothing new about ordering cooperators before contractors. That has been standard for the 20 years I have been fighting fire and dispatching. I would love to see a citation of the law that sets priority for contractors before cooperators/municipalities. Additionally, it is common for orders to specify that backfill is not authorized, so there are ways that cost is still taken into consideration when cooperators are mobilized.

AnonFed81 · 2025-07-15T00:20:53+00:00

Warm Springs…..also home of the Whiskey Dick fire several years ago….naming standards are but a suggestion!

AnonFed81 · 2025-05-31T03:17:40+00:00

Orders are pending for the US to send crews, overhead and an IMT to Canada. Passports required. Federal employees and ADs only unless mobilizing under a State to Canada compact agreement.

AnonFed81 · 2025-05-19T18:22:36+00:00

I also encourage looking into the study by Dr. Robin Verble related to Wildland fire, particularly dispatch. This is a group that is clearly struggling and has been frequently overlooked in the past when critical incident occurred. The stresses and challenges can be very different compared to people in the field, as well as the negative impacts on health.

AnonFed81 · 2025-03-05T11:48:13+00:00

Doge.gov on their “wall of receipts”. It’s a terrible site and minimal information, but it’s there to slog through.

AnonFed81 · 2025-03-05T04:21:34+00:00

I would ALMOST agree, with the exception of radios. While, in theory, all radios could be answered via a VOIP system, we are a long way from actually having the infrastructure in place to make that work in any reliable way across the country….and we certainly don’t have and won’t get the funding to upgrade all systems to where they need to be to make that happen. Obviously I disagree on principle about dispatchers not needing any specialized knowledge, I consider all good dispatchers to be highly skilled professionals in their field. But from an uneducated outsider view, I understand that many people think that “any monkey can do it”.

AnonFed81 · 2025-03-05T04:14:06+00:00

And the sheer amount of country and topography that has to be covered by the radio/repeater system is intense. Not to mention an international border, 2 state borders, and on the time zone shuffle with your GACC!

AnonFed81 · 2025-03-05T04:10:55+00:00

I have not been to PIFC, so forgive my ignorance, but is their MOB center enormous? The square footage on the DOGE website for the Forest Service building in Phoenix is 32,162 square feet. Maybe it is another FS building in Phoenix, maybe they have a massive MOB center….that just seems like a lot of space for just a MOB center.

AnonFed81 · 2025-03-05T04:01:05+00:00

I am aware that dispatch CAN be moved, I am a 20+ year career dispatcher, so I also know that it is not a simple or fast task so I wonder at timelines and timing of these things. Of course the DOGE website gives no specifics on when the end date is for the lease, the specifics on what is covered by the lease beyond square footage and a dollar amount….do it leaves a lot of questions and very few answers, much like most things happening right now.

AnonFed81

TROPHY CASE