Wildfire activity is on the upswing in Colorado and across the U.S., and state firefighting and incident management agencies are stepping up their efforts to keep up with the changes.

“In the past, firefighters gained skills gradually over many seasons,” said Schelly Olson, spokeswoman for the Colorado Wildland Fire and Incident Management Academy. “They no longer have that luxury. Today, new firefighters may encounter large, complex fires early in their careers.”

Recent history seems to support Olson’s statement. Of the five largest wildfires in Colorado history, four have taken place since 2020. That year produced the three biggest blazes the state has ever seen: The Cameron Peak, East Troublesome and Pine Gulch fires scorched more than a half-million acres combined.

Last year, the Lee fire, which started in early August, burned for more than a month before fire crews could contain it, topping out at 137,758 acres.

Wildland fire season has typically run from May-September in Colorado. But the seasons have grown longer in recent years, and fire behavior has become more extreme as climate change exacerbates conditions that are favorable to wildfires — namely, warmer temperatures, low humidity and dry fuels. According to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, these conditions will likely lead to more wildfires.

To keep up with the evolving state of fire behavior, CWFIMA officials are making adjustments as they train the next generation of wildland firefighters, Olson said.

The fire training agency recently held its winter academy at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, where more than 900 staff, instructors and students engaged in classroom instruction and field work covering a broad array of topics related to wildland firefighting and incident management, including basic firefighting, wildfire behavior, mitigation, community engagement and more.

Instructors, mentors and students come in from agencies across the state, including local, state, federal, tribal, military and private-sector organizations, officials said.

“For many students, this is their first opportunity to train alongside firefighters from other agencies and jurisdictions, gaining exposure to different organizational cultures, capabilities and operational perspectives,” said Bill Wain, CWFIMA incident commander.

“This experience reinforces a critical lesson for the next generation of firefighters: Solving the wildfire problem in the United States requires collaboration, shared responsibility and unified action across a diverse network of partners.”

Classroom instruction was briefly interrupted earlier in the week because of an incident at UCCS. On Monday evening, a man allegedly fired a weapon at a student during a confrontation on the campus. No injuries were reported, and the suspect was arrested the following day. CWFIMA moved the classes to a separate location, and instruction resumed with minimal delays.

On Thursday, instructors took about a dozen students to Cheyenne Mountain State Park, where they were able to put their classroom instruction to practical use. Prior to the outing, the students spent several days taking courses in Basic Firefighting Training and Introduction to Wildland Fire Behavior, two classes taught in conjunction with each another.

“This is basically the nitty-gritty of wildland firefighting,” said Tanner Webb of the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control. “We’re teaching these students the basics: digging line, getting down to the bare minimal soil, cutting away brush with chain saws.”

Students worked at weather assessment, fire line digging, checking for hot spots and using an array of firefighting tools.

“A lot of the fundamentals haven’t changed much since the early firefighters,” Webb said. “Understanding the weather, and how it affects fire behavior, is important. So is safety. That’s a top priority for us. Trees can grow back; you can’t grow people back.”

Students also practiced deploying the one piece of equipment they hope they never have to use.

A fire shelter is essentially a tent made of fiberglass and aluminum foil, designed to reflect heat and provide a certain amount of breathable air. It’s the firefighter’s last-ditch survival mechanism, deployed when a fire is advancing too quickly and there’s nowhere to run.

“Shelter deployments are part of the curriculum, and every firefighter does it each year as a refresher,” Webb said. “You don’t ever want to need it, but if you do, you have to know how to deploy it quickly and proficiently.”

Brad Surber, a student at the academy, said he learned a great deal in a short time.

“I know so much more now than I did a week ago,” said Surber, a Chaffee County firefighter. “Structure fires are usually contained to one or two areas. Wildland fires are much bigger, and it takes a totally different strategy to fight them.”

In recent years, CWFIMA had placed an increased emphasis on supporting the mental health and well-being of the firefighters. Fighting a large wildfire for days on end can take a mental toll as well as a physical one, Olson said.

“We recognize fatigue, cumulative stress and trauma as operational risks,” she said. “CWFIMA now includes courses and lectures about stress awareness, peer support, risk management and leadership accountability for crew well-being.”

Upon completion of the courses, students will be qualified to join a crew and begin their wildland firefighting careers under experienced supervision and mentorship, officials said. Surber plans to return home to Chaffee County and join a crew there.

“This has been a great experience,” he said. “I’ve learned so much from the instructors here. I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned.”