Colorado firefighter deaths put Trump's new fire service under scrutiny

Washington,UPDATED: Jul 1, 2026 02:28 IST

The deaths of three US government firefighters in a Colorado wildfire have drawn attention to the Trump administration's creation of a new federal fire service and its renewed push to put out all wildfires quickly. The firefighters were part of an elite helicopter-based crew that was trapped on Saturday in a fast-growing blaze near the Utah border while attacking the fire on the ground.

Authorities said five firefighters deployed tent-like emergency shelters as flames overran their position. Three died and two survivors were admitted to hospital with burn injuries. One of those killed worked for the US Wildland Fire Service, which was created this year by moving personnel from four agencies within the Interior Department without the usual approval from Congress. The other two were from the Department of Agriculture's Forest Service.

Federal officials have not released details about what happened before the deaths, including what the firefighters were trying to achieve at the spot where they were overrun. Timothy Ingalsbee, a former federal firefighter and co-founder of Firefighters United For Safety, Ethics and Ecology, questioned the decision to send them into that area. “The question is, why were they attacking that fire in the first place?” he said. “What was actually at risk? If it was a bunch of shrubs on remote mountaintops, what was the real risk that justified putting those firefighters at risk?”

The new Wildland Fire Service has also added to uncertainty among some firefighters, according to former government officials, with questions over reporting lines and responsibilities. Retired Forest Service fire and aviation official Michael Dudley said, “There's a level of confusion as everyone's trying to sort out responsibilities and who's in charge and who do you report to.” An Interior Department spokesperson said chief Brian Fennessy, who was appointed to lead the agency, is highly respected and has decades of experience, including handling complex fire challenges in southern California.

The administration has said the Wildland Fire Service will use full suppression “for every wildfire under its management”, under an order from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. In a statement to The Associated Press, federal officials said, “Any wildfire that represents a threat to life, property, infrastructure or the environment should be extinguished as quickly as possible. Our experienced fire managers retain the authority to select the safest and most effective tactics based on conditions on the ground.”

Critics say the policy is trying to fix something that is not broken. The four Interior agencies from which the new service drew firefighters — the Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs and Park Service — already extinguish 98 per cent of the fires they handle. Steve Ellis, a retired deputy director of the Bureau of Land Management, said the new set-up and policy would not prevent catastrophic wildfires driven by dense forests, people moving into fire-prone areas and extreme weather linked to climate change. “Severing forest management and forest managers from fire suppression will make firefighting less safe and put communities at greater risk,” Ellis said.

The changes could benefit private fire aviation companies, which are central to rapid response after fires break out. Austin Moeller, senior aerospace analyst at Canaccord Genuity, said the government has been bringing in aircraft more quickly after fires ignite. “Anyone that has an air tanker benefits from this more aggressive contracting activity,” he said. One company in focus is Montana-based Bridger Aerospace, founded by US Senator Tim Sheehy. Before his 2024 election, Sheehy had hired lobbyists in an unsuccessful effort to persuade the Montana Legislature to create a similar state fire service. After taking federal office, he sponsored a bill to formally establish the consolidation of federal firefighters into one agency. His spokesman, Tate Mitchell, said Trump drove the idea for the new fire agency, but that Sheehy supports it. “One of Senator Sheehy's top priorities in the Senate is using his experience to stop the catastrophic fires destroying American communities and he won't apologise for it,” Mitchell said. Mitchell also said Sheehy stepped away from the company during the 2024 campaign and placed his Bridger assets in a blind trust.

The full suppression policy also revives an older firefighting approach. Officials said aircraft would support a strategy that echoes the 1935 “10 a.m. rule”, which required new fires to be put out by 10 a.m. the next day. Dudley said such policies helped leave forests overgrown. He said wildfires clear small and dead material, but because agencies became so effective at putting out fires, forests kept growing, more fuel built up and later fires became harder to control. Scientists studying wildfires say trying to stop every fire is unrealistic because some of the most destructive blazes in recent years have outpaced suppression efforts, especially when they spread too fast, start in remote areas or involve multiple ignitions. Former Forest Service wildfire researcher David Calkin said, “The narrative that if we just try harder, we're gonna make these fires go away isn't true. The fire paradox is not beatable: The more you make fire go away, the more fuel accumulates. The more fuel accumulates, the harder it is to make fires go away.”

Wildfires have broken out across the western United States over the past week after months of dry weather and, in some areas, record-low snowfall. Luke Mayfield, founder of Grassroots Wildland Firefighters, said he believes the new consolidated agency will ultimately serve firefighters better, but more work is needed before it is fully operational. “Everyone was aware of the potential fuel and fire conditions we face this fire season,” he said. “Those conditions are surfacing and have resulted in firefighter fatalities with weather conditions that won't let up in the near future.” The Colorado deaths have now put the new agency, the full suppression policy and the wider debate over how the US fights wildfires under sharper scrutiny.

With PTI Inputs

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