Flathead Hotshots

Members of the Flathead Hotshots.

The Flathead Hotshots are a U.S. Forest Service interagency hotshot crew located in the Hungry Horse Ranger District of the Flathead National Forest in Hungry Horse, Montana.[1]

## History

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The Flathead Hotshots were established in 1966, when the Slate Creek IR Crew was relocated from the Nez Perce National Forest to the Flathead National Forest. They were subsequently renamed the Flathead Inter-Regional Fire Suppression Crew.[2][3] From 1966 until 1982 the crew was based out of the Big Creek Ranger Station located 27 miles north of Columbia Falls, MT.[4] In 1982, the crew was relocated to the Glacier View Ranger Station. In 1993, the Flathead Hotshots were again relocated, this time to the Hungry Horse Ranger Station where they remain to this day.[3]

## Operations

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Today, the Flathead Hotshot crew consists of 20 highly skilled wildland firefighters.[5][6][7][8][9][10] When assigned to fires, crewmembers work shifts of 16 hours per day for 14-21 consecutive days.[11][3] When not fighting fires, the crew participates in rigorous calisthenics, classroom training, field training, and project work throughout the forest.[12] In addition to wildland firefighting operations, the crew has also responded to natural disasters including Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Ian and other search and rescue operations.[3][13][14][9] The Flathead Hotshots are 1 of 7 interagency hotshot crews located in the U.S Forest Service's R1 Northern Region.[1][15]

## Incidents

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In 2008, two Flathead Hotshots crewmembers were struck by lightning while conducting a prescribed fire.[16]

In 2010, a crewmember suffered a broken femur while assigned to the Deer Park Fire. The situation became exponentially more complicated when the air ambulance sent to evacuate the firefighter suffered a landing mishap which put the helicopter and helispot out of service. The series of events became an incident within an incident within an incident.[17][16]

## See also

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* Smokejumpers
* Helitack
* Aerial firefighting
* Great Fire of 1910

## References

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1. ^ a b "Northern Rockies National Interagency Hotshot Crew". US Forest Service. 2016-12-22. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
2. ^ "Hotshot Crew History" (PDF).
3. ^ a b c d "Fighting Fire with Fire". Flathead Beacon. 2016-04-27. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
4. ^ "big creek ranger station from columbia falls - Google Search". www.google.com. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
5. ^ "Montana hotshot crews headed to help fight Canadian wildfires". Q2 News (KTVQ). 2019-06-03. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
6. ^ ""They're tough and considered to be some of the most skilled firefighters in the world."". 23 August 2017.
7. ^ "Forestry Technician (Interagency Hotshot Crew) | U.S. Department of the Interior". careers.doi.gov. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
8. ^ "Hotshots". US Forest Service. 2016-12-27. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
9. ^ a b Schatz, Deborah (4 May 2016). "The FLATHEAD HOTSHOTS fire fighting crew is 50 years old this summer". Retrieved 2023-01-20.
10. ^ ""hotshots are the elite "special forces" of the wildland firefighting world"". 2 September 2020.
11. ^ "'It's Like Fighting a Ghost'". Flathead Beacon. 2020-09-02. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
12. ^ Brewster, Brady (2021-05-21). "Flathead Hotshots complete intense training ahead of fire season". KECI. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
13. ^ "Flathead Hotshots Sent to Help with Hurricane Ian Relief Efforts". Flathead Beacon. 2022-10-03. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
14. ^ PETERSON, CHRIS (2022-09-29). "Flathead Hotshots make way to Florida to assist following hurricane". Daily Inter Lake. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
15. ^ "Forest Service Regions". www.fs.usda.gov. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
16. ^ a b "Flathead Hotshots Archives". Wildfire Today. 27 April 2016. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
17. ^ Gabbert, Bill (2013-01-22). "Deer Park Fire serious injury complicated by helicopter incident". Wildfire Today. Retrieved 2023-01-20.