PTA Hosts First-Ever Field Day for Wildfire Training

Story by Lani Pascual May 14, 2026 at 08:33PM More than 60 personnel from PTA Fire and Emergency Services, the Hawai’i Fire Department (HFD), National Park Service (NPS), and the state Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW), Hawai’i Army National Guard (HIARNG), and the Army’s 25th Infantry Division Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) participated in the first-ever Wildland Firefighter field day at Pohakuloa Training Area on Hawai'i Island, May 1, 2026, designed to simulate a real-world wildfire emergency.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/565347/pta-hosts-first-ever-field-day-wildfire-training"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2605/9685406/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="PTA Hosts First-Ever Field Day for Wildfire Training" /></a>

PTA Hosts First-Ever Field Day for Wildfire Training

Story by Lani Pascual May 14, 2026 at 08:33PM More than 60 personnel from PTA Fire and Emergency Services, the Hawai’i Fire Department (HFD), National Park Service (NPS), and the state Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW), Hawai’i Army National Guard (HIARNG), and the Army’s 25th Infantry Division Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) participated in the first-ever Wildland Firefighter field day at Pohakuloa Training Area on Hawai'i Island, May 1, 2026, designed to simulate a real-world wildfire emergency.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/565347/pta-hosts-first-ever-field-day-wildfire-training"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2605/9685406/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="PTA Hosts First-Ever Field Day for Wildfire Training" /></a>

Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah Fire Departments Conduct Joint 'Above Grade' Training

Story by Derrick Matthews May 11, 2026 at 03:28PM On May 11, 2026, the Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah Fire Departments conducted a joint training exercise to equip brand new firefighter recruits with critical "above grade" rescue skills. The recruits gained hands-on experience navigating live-fire conditions in a burn room and executing simulated roof breaches for vertical ventilation. Beyond building technical proficiency, the joint event served to strengthen the mutual aid partnership between the military installation and the local community, allowing both departments to share tactics and build cohesive working relationships for future emergency responses.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/564949/hunter-army-airfield-and-savannah-fire-departments-conduct-joint-above-grade-training"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2605/9676703/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah Fire Departments Conduct Joint 'Above Grade' Training" /></a>

Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah Fire Departments Conduct Joint 'Above Grade' Training

Story by Derrick Matthews May 11, 2026 at 03:28PM On May 11, 2026, the Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah Fire Departments conducted a joint training exercise to equip brand new firefighter recruits with critical "above grade" rescue skills. The recruits gained hands-on experience navigating live-fire conditions in a burn room and executing simulated roof breaches for vertical ventilation. Beyond building technical proficiency, the joint event served to strengthen the mutual aid partnership between the military installation and the local community, allowing both departments to share tactics and build cohesive working relationships for future emergency responses.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/564949/hunter-army-airfield-and-savannah-fire-departments-conduct-joint-above-grade-training"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2605/9676703/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Hunter Army Airfield and Savannah Fire Departments Conduct Joint 'Above Grade' Training" /></a>

Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield Fire Department extinguishes the competition, named best in DoW

Story by Kelsie Steber May 7, 2026 at 03:50PM The Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield Fire Department is on fire, figuratively, after being named the Department of War and U.S. Army’s Best Medium Fire Department for 2025.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/564716/fort-stewart-hunter-army-airfield-fire-department-extinguishes-competition-named-best-dow"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2605/9670293/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield Fire Department extinguishes the competition, named best in DoW" /></a>

Maryland Guard supports search & rescue exercise with state and local first responders

Story by Maj. Benjamin Hughes May 6, 2026 at 03:15PM The Maryland National Guard (MDNG) supported a massive search and rescue exercise (SAREX) spanning 20 square miles of land and water, from the Loch Raven Reservoir Dam to Gunpowder Falls State Park, along with emergency responders from around the state, April 23, 2026. The MDNG Joint Staff coordinated the response of a CH-47 Chinook, two UH-60 Black Hawks with rescue-trained civilian firefighters of the Maryland Helicopter Aquatic Response Team (MD-HART), and two Light Medium Tactical Vehicles (LMTVs) in support of civilian authorities during the exercise to enhance Maryland’s statewide preparedness, interagency coordination, and operational capabilities.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/564560/maryland-guard-supports-search-rescue-exercise-with-state-and-local-first-responders"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2605/9654149/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Maryland Guard supports search & rescue exercise with state and local first responders" /></a>

Low Visibility, No Hesitation: How Relentless Training Saved a Life

Story by Paul Lara May 6, 2026 at 12:45PM Fort Belvoir Fire and Emergency Services, responding to a call from adjacent Fairfax County, in October, 2025, responded to a salvage yard fire, to discover a crane operator 50 feet overhead was overcome by smoke inhalation. Firefighters climbed the crane and transferred him to a waiting ladder. The teams were bestowed the Valor Award by the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce in April, 2026.<br /><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/news/564525/low-visibility-no-hesitation-relentless-training-saved-life"><img src="https://d1ldvf68ux039x.cloudfront.net/thumbs/photos/2605/9665646/250w_q95.jpg" width="250" alt="Low Visibility, No Hesitation: How Relentless Training Saved a Life" /></a>

No Slack: A Decade of Raising the Bar

Story by Tech. Sgt. Gage Daniel April 30, 2026 at 11:29AM From April 6-10, 2026, Dobbins Air Reserve Base acted as host to some of the most intense firefighter rescue and survival training the Department of War has to offer.

Nevada National Guard ready to fight wildfires from the ground and air

Story by Sgt. Adrianne Lopez April 29, 2026 at 07:40PM The Nevada National Guard is prepared for wildfire season with trained ground crews and aerial firefighting assets, combining Soldiers certified as Type 2 wildland firefighters with Air National Guard MAFFS-equipped aircraft and Army aviation support, all proven during the 2024 Davis Fire response.

USAG Rheinland-Pfalz, German firefighters unite to battle autobahn brush fire

Story by Mary Del Rosario April 29, 2026 at 06:13AM U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz firefighters joined forces with German emergency responders April 26 to contain a large brush fire that threatened the A6/A63 autobahn interchange. German firefighters at the Kaiserslautern Main Dispatch Center issued a request for support, and the garrison’s Directorate of Emergency Services responded without delay.

Fort Buchanan Fire Department Named Army’s Best Small Department

Story by Carlos Cuebas April 28, 2026 at 04:45PM The Fort Buchanan Fire Department has been named the U.S. Army’s Best Small Fire Department for 2025, marking the second consecutive year the team has earned this distinction and reinforcing its sustained excellence in readiness and emergency response.

Citizen-Sailors Earn Navy Installation Firefighter Certification

Story by Coleen San Nicolas-Perez April 27, 2026 at 11:11AM Twenty Navy Reservists graduated from the Navy Fire Academy during a ceremony held at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, earning the qualifications required to serve as fully certified Navy firefighters supporting installations worldwide. The graduates completed an intensive 60-day training pipeline totaling more than 320 hours of instruction and hands-on experience. Their curriculum included emergency medical response, hazardous materials awareness and operations, Firefighter I and II certifications, and specialized Airport Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) training. The program tested both cognitive and physical performance through classroom instruction, live-fire scenarios, and practical exercises designed to simulate real-world emergencies.

Wings Over Solano: Hometown Hero flies with Thunderbirds at Travis AFB

Story by Senior Airman Saisha Cornett April 26, 2026 at 11:21AM Capt. Francisco Trujillo, Fairfield Fire Department firefighter paramedic and SWAT tactical medic, flew backseat with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds April 24, 2026, at Travis Air Force Base ahead of the Wings Over Solano Air Show.

Wings Over Solano: Hometown Hero flies with Thunderbirds at Travis AFB

Story by Senior Airman Saisha Cornett April 26, 2026 at 11:21AM Capt. Francisco Trujillo, Fairfield Fire Department firefighter paramedic and SWAT tactical medic, flew backseat with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds April 24, 2026, at Travis Air Force Base ahead of the Wings Over Solano Air Show.

Mayor, city council recognize Air Guard firefighters for plane crash response

Story by Dale Greer April 24, 2026 at 10:51AM Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg and members of the Metro Council paid tribute April 20 to firefighters from the Kentucky Air National Guard and emergency responders from more than 40 other agencies for their coordinated efforts to extinguish a massive blaze after a cargo plane crashed near Grade Lane on Nov. 4.

Dahlgren Fire Departments Presents Certificates of Lifesaving, Promotes Crew Members

Story by Andrew Revelos April 23, 2026 at 09:35AM DAHLGREN, Va. (April 21, 2026) - Naval District Washington (NDW) Fire and Emergency Services Dahlgren Company gathered April 21 to honor the lifesaving efforts of two its members during a call for mutual aid from King George County in 2025; they also promoted two of their own to new positions of leadership in a ceremony attended by friends and family.

Fort Hood Soldier Continues Family’s Firefighter Legacy

Story by Spc. Kemarvo Smith April 22, 2026 at 05:18PM U.S. Army Pvt. 1st Class Stephen Brinson currently serves as a firefighter with 664th Modular Ammunition Company stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. Brinson, originally from Jerome, Idaho, graduated his advanced individual training to become an Army firefighter in June 2024. Brinson’s family has a long-standing family tradition of military service as Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors and Marines. Not only has his family served in the military forces, but they have also served as firefighters. Brinson decided to continue his family’s tradition of service as a military firefighter after being inspired by his grandfather and other members of his family.

Family forged in fire: 36th CES siblings serve side by side

Story by Staff Sgt. Jasmine Barnes April 21, 2026 at 02:59AM ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- For U.S. Air Force Senior Airmen Alyssa Lucas and Carter Lucas, firefighting is more than a career field — it’s a shared calling shaped by family, service and a lifetime of influence that brought them together at the 36th Civil Engineer Squadron fire department.

From birth to blaze: PoM firefighters support Monterey Peninsula through interagency response

Story by Jennifer Leggett April 20, 2026 at 06:12PM Emergency response on the Monterey Peninsula is a team effort, requiring constant coordination between agencies to ensure a rapid, effective response.

Fort Buchanan firefighter named U.S. Army Civilian Firefighter of the Year

Story by Carlos Cuebas April 17, 2026 at 04:47PM The U.S. Army announced that Luis M. Fondeur Perez, a firefighter assigned to Fort Buchanan Fire & Emergency Services and a native of Bayamón, Puerto Rico, has been selected as the 2025 U.S. Army Civilian Firefighter of the Year.