Ending the careers of thousands of U.S. Forest Service employees, the end letter has fewer people, fewer resources, and more destructive flame visibility in the US West. Upon it, the fired workers and officials said.
Just as President Donald Trump’s cost-cutting measures echo nationwide, the Forest Service’s shooting comes just after the fatal flame that sprinted through Los Angeles last month.
Workers who maintain the trail, remove flammable debris from the forest, support firefighters, and secure funds for wildfire mitigation are said to be particularly dependent on drier conditions related to climate change. In the West, where it has been increasingly strong, it is said that reducing staffing will threaten public safety.
“I’m afraid of that,” said Tanya Toast, who was fired from his position as U.S. Forest Service Partnership Coordinator in Chico, California on February 14th. The group brings nearly $12 million to remove dead trees and other fuels into the Mendocino National Forest.
“This is safe,” she talks about her concerns, recalling the fatal paradise flames that killed 85 people east of Chico in 2018.
Wildfires occur naturally, but climate change amplifies their strength and how quickly they can spread. Meteorologist Chase Cain explains two of the most powerful links between climate change and wildfire emergency in Southern California.
The USDA, which oversees the Forest Service, said Secretary Brook Rollins supports Trump’s instructions to launch around 2,000 “probation, non-flewed employees.” It will ensure that critical safety locations and critical services are uninterrupted,” the statement said.
The statement did not address fired workers who were responsible for removing flammable fuels and other projects aimed at reducing the strength of wildfires.
The Trump administration has frozen funds for a wildfire prevention program supported by laws defended by former President Joe Biden, the Associated Press reported. Programs not funded by that law can continue, a statement from the Home Office said.
US Rep. Kim Schlie, a Washington Democrat, said on social platform X that the Forest Service layoffs have already hurt the state.
The Washington Department of Natural Resources said the fire forced them to develop a contingency plan to deal with “coming fire season.”
Melanie Matox Green, fired from land management and environmental planning jobs in Montana’s Helena Lewis and Clark National Forest, their late fire efforts prioritize areas where towns border forest lands He said he did. With staff cuts, these towns are at risk, she said.
“If these projects don’t happen and a fire occurs, the fire will be much more dangerous to our local community,” she said.
The cut also means fewer people keep trails that don’t fallen trees or other debris, she said. Maintaining the trail is important in remote areas that are accessible on foot by firefighters.
“If these trails are not cleared, it means that firefighters won’t be able to easily and effectively reach these fires,” she said.
The Trump administration is considering the concept of 20% of the savings generated by Doge’s cost-cutting efforts being brought to American citizens, with another 20% paying off citizen debt.
Many Forest Service workers who do not occupy official firefighter positions still have a firefighter certification known as the “red cards” that must be renewed annually. Josh Vega, who maintained a 1,100-mile (1,770-kilometer) trail as a forestry engineer in the Bob Marshall Wilderness in Montana before being fired, said he was the first person his crew had arrived at a wildfire that broke out in 2023. I did.
For about two days, Vega’s crew monitored the flames before firefighters arrived. “We spent the next few days keeping an eye on fire, making sure the trailheads are all closed, and the public knows what’s going on so they don’t get into a predicament. I’ve done it.”
Luke Tobin, who was fired from the role of forest engineer in Idaho’s Nezpasse National Forest, has said that many forest departments have included access to over-season firefighters, including access to burn survey areas and trails. Support is included.
“Everyone helps the fire in some way, in some way, in some way, in some way, in some way,” he said.
Greg Bahund, who was fired from his post as a wilderness ranger and Wildland firefighter in the Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest last week, said staffing has come at a critical time.
“This is the time they hire everyone,” he said at a press conference hosted by Washington Sen. Patty Murray. “It is when firefighters practice renewing their red cards and relocating fire shelters, when they train to prepare to fight the fires next summer.
“We can’t train while the fire is burning across the hill.”
___
The rush was reported from Portland, Oregon.
Source link
