Mountain West News Bureau

Western US firefighters are getting backup from Australia and New Zealand

Boise State Public Radio News | By Murphy Woodhouse

Published August 21, 2026 at 5:29 PM MDT

Firefighters practice in pairs with orange and green tarp-like objects. They're in the grass near a parking lot. — Aussie and Kiwi firefighters practice getting into fire shelters at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.

Last week, more than 240 firefighters from Australia and New Zealand were outside on the campus of the National Interagency Fire Center, on the north end of Boise's airport. That center helps coordinate wildfire response across the country.

Firefighters are getting the radios they'll be using out on the fireline. One is sporting a big red tote bag with "Cheers mate" written on it.

"The radio will actually operate, should operate, at least eight or 10 hours in normal use on an incident," a U.S. official explained to one of the large groups cycling through different training stations.

A man hands a radio from a supply box to a firefighter who's carrying a "cheers mate" tote bag. — A firefighter with a "Cheers Mate" tote bag gets the radio they'll be using on the fireline.

They're all experienced firefighters, but there are some differences that make pre-deployment training important.

"Tomorrow, really exciting that the crews will be out on these engines learning a different type of big vehicle with a steering wheel on the wrong side," said Sam Quigley, international liaison for the mobilization.

Several trucks and fire vehicles parked next to each other. — Some of the wildland fire trucks that the Australians and New Zealanders are using on wildfires across the West.

This group joins a smaller contingent of 74 Aussies and Kiwis who arrived earlier this month. Now more than 300 are fighting large blazes across the West, a milestone in the 20-some years the three countries have been sharing resources.

"It is absolutely the largest contingent Australia and New Zealand have provided to the U.S. at any one time," Quigley said.

A man addresses other attendees who are facing away from the camera. — Sam Quigley, international liaison for the mobilization.

The sharing is aided by the fact that our hot months are their cold months.

"I came from minus 1 Celsius when I jumped on a plane to come over three weeks ago," Quigley recounted. "We're in the dormant stage of our winter, and we have the skill and resources, so [we're] only too willing to provide our friends with the resources right now in a time of need."

Staying safe during an intense season

And the need is great. The U.S. has been at Preparedness Level 5 — the highest on the official scale of fire activity and resource scarcity — and has been there since mid-July. So far this year, some 7.5 million acres have burned, the highest figure since at least 2011.

Fires have torn through neighborhoods, from Washington to Colorado to Georgia. More than a dozen firefighters have been killed.

"We too operate in very hazardous, dangerous conditions," Quigley said. "Today and tomorrow is predominantly focused on just that: making sure that our crews are the safest and most proficient in operating all safety systems and features."

That includes learning how to deploy fire shelters. Those are bivouac-like sacks that can give firefighters a chance to survive when overtaken by flames.

Quigley explained that they aren't common back home. Instead, firefighters often turn to their specially outfitted vehicles for last-resort protection.

A group of five firefighters practice with green tarp-like objects in the grass. — Firefighters train with practice fire shelters.

So, the firefighters gave it a go with neon green and orange practice shelters. The goal was to scramble under the shelters in less than 30 seconds. No firefighter ever wants to deploy their shelter, but they do save lives.

"You can feel, if the wind was whipping around, you've got a nice grip on those inner handles," one of the instructors told a trainee on the inside of a shelter. "Well done."

A firefighter holds an orange tarp-like object halfway over his body. There are little handles to hold onto, seemingly to pull the object over the whole body and hold it in place. — One of the firefighters emerges from his practice fire shelter.

Emerging from one of the fire shelters, one of the trainees gave their review: "It felt quite comfortable," he joked. "Under these conditions."

Return the favor

National Interagency Fire Center spokesperson Jessica Gardetto said big fires could be burning for weeks to come, especially in the Pacific Northwest, where many of the firefighters are being sent.

"This year likely feels different to a lot of folks," she said, adding that many of the season's blazes "have been in very populated areas where there are a lot of homes that have been threatened."

A group of about two dozen firefighters huddle closely together in the grass, listening to someone mostly hidden by the camera angle. — Some of the more than 240 Australian and New Zealander firefighters who recently trained at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise.

Low snowpacks, drought, and hot weather fueled this intense season. But once it calms down, Quigley — the international liaison — said the U.S. may well get a chance to return the favor.

"I have no doubt we'll be calling upon our friends for our season ahead," he predicted.

"This is something that, looking towards the future, we will likely continue to do as we see fire activity at this level for this long amount of time," Gardetto said.

This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Boise State Public Radio, Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Northern Colorado, KANW in New Mexico, Colorado Public Radio, and KJZZ in Arizona as well as NPR, with support from affiliate newsrooms across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Eric and Wendy Schmidt.