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Health Department Contact Information for Home Units Guidance

Source:  Wildland Fire Medical and Public health Advisory Team (MPHAT)

For Employee or Fire Incident COVID-19 Response

To be included in IMT Briefing Package.

  1. Visit the county health and the state health department website to locate:
    1. The COVID-19 call numbers
    2. The COVID- 19 contact (when available)
    3. Any information about how the county health department wants employers to respond or report COVID-19 cases
  2. Call the county COVID-19 call line. You will likely leave a message or talk to an operator. Please be patient if you do not talk with a person or if your questions are not answered right away, public health authorities may be busy.
  3. If you are able to talk with someone, let them know about your anticipated COVID-19 procedures. Use the information below as a guide:
    1. A COVID-19 Coordinator name and contact information (if known).
    2. Any MPHAT/Agency/ICT COVID-19 policies or other pertinent information.
    3. Testing policies or actions (if known) including
      1. What the district plans to do with symptomatic individuals, close contacts, positive cases, and testing (if known). Use the back of this document as a starting point.
    4. How to engage and any guidance from the health department about their policies such as:
      1. Does the health department want regular check-ins from the district? If so, at what interval, who is the point of contact, and what information do they want to receive?
      2. When a worker becomes symptomatic, does the health department want to be notified and coordinate testing and follow-up care? If not, does the health department have recommendations on who in the county can provide care and where should the worker go to obtain a test.
      3. Hospital, urgent care, and testing locations.
      4. How engaged, what is the process for, and what will the timing be for case investigation and contact tracing and outbreak investigations?
        1. What is a workplace outbreak (more than 2 cases) and when does the county want to be notified and how?
      5. Is the health department in agreeance with the district sending asymptomatic or mildly sick personnel to their home unit (away from this county). If so, does the health department have guidance?

 

Local and State Health Department Information
State Health Department COVID-19 Contact information including:
  • 24/7 phone number
  • Websites
  • Email addresses
  
Local Health Department COVID-19 Contact information including:
  • 24/7 phone number
  • Websites
  • Email addresses
  
Local County Health Department Point of Contact Name and Contact Information  

 

Health Department Guidance On
Check-in procedures with Health Department
  • How often?
  • Who is the point of contact?
  • What information should be shared?
  

Does the health department want to be notified of symptomatic workers? If yes, what is the process?

If not, where can workers receive care and obtain tests in the county?		  
Hospital, urgent care, and testing locations and names  
If testing is performed outside of a clinical laboratory (e.g. rapid point of care device testing) how are results reported results and at what interval to the health department?  
For case investigation and contact tracing, how engaged with the health department be, what is the process for this, and what will the timing be for these processes?  
What is a workplace outbreak (>2 cases) and when does the county want to be notified and how?  
If workers are from off-district, can asymptomatic or mildly sick COVID-19 positive workers be sent back to their home unit? If so, does the health department have guidance on this?  
Other guidance:


 		  

 

NWCG Latest Announcements

2025-2026 Wildland Fire Leadership Campaign: "Leadership Levels" Now Available

Date: October 15, 2025
Questions? Please contact:
Leadership Committee

NWCG is excited to announce the release of the Leadership Committee’s 2025–2026 Leadership Campaign, themed “Leadership Levels.” This annual initiative offers all students of leadership and wildland fire management an opportunity to engage with essential leadership skills and knowledge needed to lead effectively in dynamic environments.

The campaign is structured into four quarters and may be completed at any time between October 1, 2025 -December 31, 2026. Leadership levels will be released quarterly.

Quarter One materials are now available on the Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program website and focus on Leadership Level 1, Follower (Self-Leadership).

References:

2025/2026 NWCG Leadership Campaign - Leadership Levels

Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program

Leadership Committee

Updated! L-280, Followership to Leadership (Instructor-led) Course

Date: October 3, 2024
Questions? Please contact:
Leadership Committee

NWCG is pleased to announce the updated L-280, Followership to Leadership (Instructor-led) course is now available. L-280 is intended for operational personnel at the Firefighter Type 1 level, and for individuals pursuing Leadership Level 2, New Leader. 

This instructor-led course is a primer on leadership and the second formal course in the Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program. It helps emerging leaders build the confidence, skills, and mindset needed to lead effectively in high-risk environments. 

For more information about leadership development and available courses, visit the Leadership Committee Web Portal.

References:

L-280, Followership to Leadership (Instructor-led)

Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program

Wildland Fire Learning Portal

Equipment Advisory 25-01: Pre-2006 Fire Shelter Degradation and Discontinuation of Use

Date: Sept 26, 2025
Questions? Please contact:
Equipment Technology Committee 

The Equipment Technology Committee (ETC) has released Equipment Advisory 25-01: Pre-2006 Fire Shelter Degradation and Discontinuation of Use. This advisory recommends all pre-2006 fire shelters should be removed from service by January 1, 2026.

This advisory recommends firefighters and fire managers to:

  • Inspect fire shelters immediately
  • Replace and destroy any pre-2006 shelters (identified by white or pink insert label)
  • Order replacements as needed

For further details, please refer to the complete advisory. 

References:

Equipment Advisory 25-01: Pre-2006 Fire Shelter Degradation and Discontinuation of Use

NWCG Fire Inspection Flowchart, PMS 411-1

NWCG Alerts

NEW! S-219, Firing Operations (Blended) Now Available

Date: Sept 11, 2025
Questions? Please contact:
Fuels Management Committee 

The S-219, Firing Operations (Blended) course is now available on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal. Developed through the Incident Performance and Training Modernization (IPTM) effort, this training supports individuals working towards Firing Boss, Single Resource (FIRB) incident qualifications.

This blended course combines online and instructor-led training to provide students with the knowledge and skills required to perform the duties of the FIRB, as described in the NWCG Incident Position Standards for Firing Boss, Single Resource, PMS 350-105.

Any changes to qualification pathways will take effect with the next update of the NWCG Standards for Wildland Fire Position Qualifications, PMS 310-1, scheduled for January 2026.

References:

S-219, Firing Operations (Blended)

NWCG Firing Boss, Single Resource Position Page

Wildland Fire Learning Portal