Firefighters sound alarm as US faces critical staffing shortage: ‘We don’t have enough people’

Firefighters sound alarm as US faces critical staffing shortage: ‘We don’t have enough people’

The U.S. has faced a critical shortage of firefighters at the Forest Service, or USFS, this summer as thousands of fires erupted across the country. Despite officials’ claims that the firefighting workforce was stronger than ever, the agency has failed to keep pace with escalating conditions and the catastrophic fires fueled by them, according to nine firefighters who spoke to the Guardian anonymously, because they are barred from disclosing the…

US Forest Service Firefighters Warn of Dangerous Staffing Shortfall Amid Record Wildfire Season

As wildfires scorch millions of acres across the US this year, federal firefighters say they’re stretched dangerously thin — despite official claims that staffing has never been stronger. Nine firefighters who spoke anonymously described skeleton crews working over 1,000 hours of overtime, critical leadership positions sitting empty, and emergency requests for aircraft, crews, and equipment going unfilled hundreds of times in just a 72-hour span…