The Hotshot Wake Up

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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 Alliance’s efforts. Dan has extensive wildfire leadership experience, rivaled by few.
Dan Kleinman retired after 40 years in the wildland fire service, including service as a detailed Deputy Regional Fire Director for the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Pacific Southwest Region, and as an Operations Section Chief with the National Incident Management Organization (NIMO). He began his career with the California Division of Forestry, serving one season before spending the remainder of his career with the U.S. Forest Service.
His field and leadership experience included positions as a Firefighter and Module Leader on engine and fuels crews, 12 years on a Hotshot crew including seven years as Superintendent - five years as a Battalion Chief, and five years as a Division Chief on a wildfire-active Ranger District.
Throughout his career, Kleinman remained actively engaged in fuels management, including thinning projects and prescribed fire. He maintained prescribed-fire qualifications throughout his career and, for his final 20 years, served as a qualified Prescribed Fire Burn Boss Type 1.
Kleinman’s regional and national working-group experience included service on the Regional Safety FIRST Committee and the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Leadership Committee, where he chaired L-580, a leadership-development program designed for senior fire-management and organizational leaders. In 2009, L-580 delivered the first Gettysburg Staff Ride for Wildland Fire Service leaders, a program that continues to be delivered today.
Notable assignments included the crash of a top-secret F-117 Stealth Fighter and associated wildfire; the Columbia Space Shuttle recovery and investigation; the response to the Pentagon following the September 11 attacks; and the Hurricane Sandy response in New York City’s Rockaways, where he managed a welfare-check operation across multiple public apartment buildings.
At the time of his retirement, Kleinman’s incident qualifications included Incident Commander Types 1, 2, and 3; Operations Section Chief Type 1; Operations Branch Director; Division/Group Supervisor; and Agency Representative.
Kleinman remains active with two nonprofit organizations: the U.S. Hotshots Association and the Greenhorn Mountain Veterans Association. He has been married for 39 years and is the father of three adult children.
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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 wildfire agency organizational structures, and the most capable and operationally sound wildfire workforce in the world: the wildland firefighters in the United States. What went well? What can be improved? What does the future of wildfire in the United States look like?
We cover it all.
THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.

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 experience levels in middle management. Unease remains about what the future will look like, and there is urgency to “rip the band-aid off” on plans for Agency change. I cover their concerns as they see it.
This is the time for professionals on all levels of the Agency to come together and solve these issues, which ultimately affect the boots on the ground the most. Sometimes voicing these concerns is what it takes for everyone to sit at the table and figure out how to move forward.
Change isn't simple, and this isn't an easy situation for anyone involved, but cooler heads must prevail.

THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.

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 fire has passed away.

The Nation remains at a PL5, and we are one lightning bust away from all out chaos again. Full operational update.

BC wildfire says civilians are stealing their equipment used to protect homes. Alberta wildfire charged over the death of a wildland firefighter on the Jasper Fire.

UTV rollover report. Passenger ejected at 30MPH.

Plus more.

THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.

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 will be a reckoning for the wildfire system, Congress, and the public, with the amount of fire currently on the ground and the tragic loss so far this year. What happens in these congressional wildfire meetings? Why does it always seem like things are delayed, or remain unchanged?
What can be done to better support the boots on the ground, and will we have wildfire amnesia again once the season comes to a close? The Senator addresses all these questions, and more. As you know, Senator Sheehy didn’t hold back. https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/
THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.