Montana researcher explains the physiology of wildland firefighters

VIDEO: We've already seen quite a few wildfires pop up this season in Western Montana. For more insight into what working on the front lines requires from firefighters' bodies, MTN connected with Brent Ruby, a physiologist who has spent 25 years researching health, performance, and safety — for mainly hot-shot crews — through Montana’s Center for Work Physiology and Exercise Metabolism. "Montana is just really well known for fire and it's a part of our landscape. It's a part of our fabric," Ruby expressed. When wildfire season is in full swing around the West, that means all types of fire crews are too. “My very first study with fire crews, the focus was to look at what the total energy demands of the job might be,” shared Ruby. To do so, Ruby used a special method that gave real-time data.
KPAX-TV CBS/CW+ 8 Missoula

Dustin Tetrault sworn in as Big Sky Fire Chief

On Wednesday, the Big Sky Fire Department promoted two of its own, swearing in Dustin Tetrault as fire chief and David Parker as captain paramedic and training officer. The ceremony was short and sweet—it became savory when firefighters carried in boxes of Blue Moon Bakery pizza—and officials celebrated their confidence in the future of BSFD. After retiring in May, former Chief Greg Megaard believes the department is in good hands thanks to Tetrault’s leadership ability and background. “He hit the ground running the day he was offered the position,” Megaard told EBS after the ceremony. Departments must sometimes make an outside hire that would involve gradual onboarding, learning the nuances of the district and its service area.
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Train sparks more than a dozen small fires east of Deer Lodge in Powell County

VIDEO: Several firefighting agencies put out more than a dozen small fires sparked by a train east of Deer Lodge Tuesday evening. Fire crews quickly put out about 18 small fires along a two-mile stretch of Frontage Road between Deer Lodge and Galen that were caused by sparks coming from the engine of an eastbound train. Emergency responders were notified by a 911 call just before 5 p.m. of several fires burning along the tracks off the eastbound lane of Interstate 90. “We were fairly fortunate one of our Deer Lodge Fire Department members has direct communication with the train. He was able to place a call and get this train to slow down. One of my deputies actually stopped the train at Galen,” said Powell County Sheriff Gavin Roselles.
KXLF-TV CBS 4 Butte

Stage 1 Fire Restrictions ordered in Central Montana

The Montana Department of Natural Resources & Conservation (DNRC) said in a news release on Wednesday, July 24, 2024, that interagency fire management officials in central Montana have implemented Stage 1 Restrictions for the entire Helena-Lewis & Clark National Forest as well as for Liberty, Glacier, Toole, Teton, Meagher, and Jefferson counties. The purpose of fire restrictions is to reduce the risk of human-caused fires during unusually high fire danger and/or burning conditions. Fire restrictions affect the following lands within the listed counties: private lands, state lands under the jurisdiction of the DNRC and Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks (FWP), federal lands under the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and Tribal lands under the Blackfeet Nation.
KPAX-TV CBS/CW+ 8 Missoula