Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center

Erik Apland talks with Lindsay Amundson about the importance of a culture of humility and open communication in training and mentorship. They also discuss the challenges of working with interagency qualifications while not being in a fire or land management agency.

Travis Dotson and Erik Apland share crucial information on how to be successful and use all the support material that comes along with NWCG Next Generation Task Books.    IPTM overview: Incident Performance and Training Modernization

Erik Apland and Travis Dotson explore “outliers” in wildland fire – unusual incidents that highlight less-discussed hazards and how we prepare ourselves to respond to events we don’t expect.   To read more about each of the incidents mentioned, follow the links below: Three Creeks Fire Electrical Shock: https://lessons.wildfire.gov/incident/three-creeks-fire-electrical-shock-2025 Oregon Mop Up Electrical Shock: https://lessons.wildfire.gov/incident/oregon-mop-up-electric-shock-2025 Ninetyeight Fire Boating Accident: https://lessons.wildfire.gov/incident/ninetyeight-fire-boating-accident-2025 Controller Bay Airboat Incident: https://lessons.wildfire.gov/incident/controller-bay-airboat-incident-2025 Aggie Creek Fire Spike Camp Hit by Tree: https://lessons.wildfire.gov/incident/aggie-creek-fire-spike-camp-hit-by-tree-2025 Trees Falling on Tents Blog Post: https://wildfirelessons.wpcomstaging.com/2025/08/26/trees-falling-on-tents/

Structure Protection Specialist Hunter Bell III discusses his unusual career trajectory into wildland fire, and shares lessons on structure protection principles and the use of sprinklers to effectively protect structures without causing water damage. This discussion is a follow-up to Hunter’s blog post: https://wildfirelessons.wpcomstaging.com/2025/06/02/structures-get-flooded-can-we-rethink-our-tactics/ Download Hunter’s Structure Protection Handy-Dandy: Structure Protection Tactics Guide | Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center Sprinklers for Wildland Fire Structure Protection Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QloMXNhsBA0

Crew Captain Ben McLane describes what values-based leadership in the wildland fire service can look like in 2025. Listen in for some tangible tips on leading in a way that produces high-quality performance and maximizes well-being.   This discussion is a follow-up to Ben's blog post: https://wildfirelessons.wpcomstaging.com/2025/05/20/humble-accountability/