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A new study on Meals Ready To Eat, MREs, was done by the organazation Mom’s Across America. These meals are carried and eaten by wildland firefighters across America. I’ve eaten hundreds, if not thousands, of them. Mom’s Across America provided 24 different MRE items to 3rd-party independent laboratories for testing. The results… much worse than you could imagine.

Some items contained 17,300% the safe aluminum levels, very high levels of lead and mercury in certain drink powders, apples with 27 pesticides, some of which are banned. They found levels of Trenbolone manufactured in China in food items, a very strong anabolic steroid with horrific side effects.

I cover the entire study and the items they tested. They now warn of severe health issues from bioaccumulation of these chemicals, including cancers, birth defects, in utero defects, androgenizing females, and violent tendencies.

They offer solutions to change this food system and lay out the minimal costs required.

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Authorities in Chile have arrested four suspects in connection with the current wildfires that have destroyed entire towns and led to 21 confirmed fatalities. One of the fires was said to have been started in a Eucaliptis grove, an industrial timber farm.

The timber industry in Chile is massive, and timber products are the 2nd largest export for the country. There has been long standing tension between the indigenous populations and the current government over these large timber operations. Both sides have been using the wildfire narrative as a form of protest and as a reason for a crackdown.

Zeke Lunder joins me for a conversation about these recent fires and the history behind these long time tensions. It’s not a cut and dry issue, and there is a lot to discuss.

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• A House committee votes today on whether it should study the effects of drone incursions over wildfires. If passed, they will come up with mitigation solutions, including using force to bring the drones down, wildfire anti-drone radio towers, and using “net guns.”

• CAL FIRE has started testing of fully autonomous wildfire vehicles. Tests include supply drops, repeater use, surveillance, suppression, and drone launching platforms.

• A new study on women who are pregnant and the effects of wildfire smoke. 200,000 women were a part of the study.

• Nevada allows insurance companies to remove wildfire insurance from homeowner polices.

• The Red Cross is preparing for an abnormally busy spring fire season.

• BLM releases report on 38-mile-long fuel break on the U.S.-Mexican border.

• Oregon lawmakers introduce legislation that would require insurance companies to provide rate discounts if communities and homeowners complete project work.

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The Secretary of the Interior officially announced today the creation of the United States Wildland Fire Service. Effective today, the transition period begins, and the unification of wildfire resources within the Department starts.

The Department provided transition plans, framework, and authorities of the new Service, which I cover in full.

Unification of assets, budgets, IT services, and payroll is underway, along with streamlining overhead structures and fully aligning pay structure, position descriptions, and retirement benefits.

A big day for the new United States Wildfire Service.

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It’s one year after the deadly Palisades Fire. What have we learned from this horrible event, and more importantly, what can we do to prevent it from happening again?

It’s clear that major mistakes were made, some long before the fire even started. It’s never been more important to let the operators on the ground operate, without having their hands tied by bad policy and poor decisions.

What needs to change? Will we see that change?

Also, nearly all Western states saw record-breaking temperatures in December, setting the stage for a very receptive fire environment this spring.

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• Yesterday, USDA Leadership announced plans to move the Forest Service leadership and senior staff from D.C. to Salt Lake City.

• This is part of the reorganization plan, which will phase out the 9 Regions and create five hubs. This still all hinges on Congressional approval.

• Senators penned a letter to Forest Service Chief Schultz requesting clarification on hiring numbers, staffing, prescribed burns, and fuel mitigation numbers.

• They have nine specific points they want answered by December 12th of this year.

• The inaugural Director of the USWFS.

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Today, Sam Davis, CEO of Bridger Aerospace, joins the show to talk about the 2025 wildfire season, the expansion of the company into Spain, what Bridger has planned for the future, and more.

Sam joined the company in 2019 and took the helm after founder Sen. Tim Sheehy stepped down to run for U.S. Senate.

We also get into the future of wildfire tech, the new United States Wildland Fire Service, dealing with rising drone incursions, and where wildfire aviation is going as a whole.

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A very Happy Thanksgiving episode for the wildland firefighter community and their families. There is plenty to be thankful for today, including doing a job you love with the kickass people you work with, in our nation’s most beautiful landscapes.

A fun conversation about it all.

I also cover the Oregon fire season. More fires, fewer acres, and the $10 billion price tag for prescribed fire and project work. Plus, the new Department of the Interior push to provide greater access to our National Parks for Americans and their families.

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• Montana had a near record slow wildfire season, but it was one of their most expensive. Why?

• The Windy Rock Fire played a big role, a Team Fire in a wilderness study area that cost $56M in initial reports. Environmental groups in the State are questioning forest management, suppression, prescribed fire, and project costs, saying new studies show the forests are not as overgrown and unhealthy as reported, but also have concerns about wildfire smoke. Thanks to the Daily Montanan for the shoutout on my reporting.

• During a mobile attack in Texas, a crew member broke their arm while operating the hose from inside the cab. Full report.

• A very detailed report came out on the double leg fracture and subsequent rescue operation that took place in Montana during a wildfire jump operation.

• A full breakdown of that report.

• Operational update.

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Today, I cover the 2025 wildfire season by the numbers and compare them to last year.

• Total Fires (nationally and by region)

• Acres Burned (nationally and by region)

• Crew Orders

• Aircraft Orders

• Flight Hours

• UTFs

• Cancelations

• Drone Incursions, And More.

I also cover the LEAF Act, which was introduced to ensure local contractors receive a least 26% of contracts for project work, and a conversation about the AI push in wildfire.

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THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.