Online course · Wildfire Fundamentals
A course for firefighters and first responders, built one concept at a time. Each lesson pairs a short explainer video with the key terms that matter on the fireline. Later modules add hands-on simulations.
4 modules
23 lessons
Module 1 available now
Module 01
Incident Command & Coordination
Who is in charge, who tells whom, and how resources are tracked on a growing incident.
Available now
05
Knowledge Check: Incident Command & Coordination
Test what you learned across all four lessons with short, scenario-based questions.
Module 02
Fire Behaviour
Why fire moves the way it does: fuel, weather, terrain and the conditions behind extreme behaviour.
Coming soon
01
The Fire Triangle and Tetrahedron
The three ingredients every fire needs, and the chain reaction that keeps it burning.
02
Weather, Fuel and Topography
The fire behaviour triangle: how weather, fuel and terrain combine to drive a fire.
03
Fuel Moisture
How the water in fuels changes how fast a fire spreads and how hot it burns.
04
Slope and Wind
Why fire races uphill and downwind, compared side by side.
05
Rate of Spread and Fire Shape
The elliptical spread pattern, and how to read a fire's head, flanks and heel.
06
Extreme Fire Behaviour
Spotting, crowning and fire whirls, and the conditions that produce them.
Module 03
Firefighter Safety
LCES, the Fire Orders, safety zones and the lessons of past entrapments.
Coming soon
01
LCES
Lookouts, Communications, Escape routes and Safety zones, worked through on a scenario map.
02
Fire Orders and Watch Out Situations
The 10 Standard Fire Orders and 18 Watch Out Situations, applied to real scenarios.
03
Escape Routes and Safety Zone Sizing
Why a safety zone needs a separation distance of at least four times the flame height.
04
Shelter Deployment
The last-resort sequence, step by step, and the decisions that come before it.
05
Learning from Entrapments
Timelines and maps from South Canyon and Yarnell Hill, and the lessons they left.
Module 04
Suppression Tactics & Strategy
Engines, line construction, firing operations, air support and structure triage.
Coming soon
01
Know Your Engine
A walk around a wildland fire engine: its systems, equipment and capabilities.
02
Direct, Indirect and Parallel Attack
Where to put the line relative to the fire edge, and when each approach fits.
03
Anchor Point and Flanking
How crews build line from a safe anchor and work along the flanks.
04
Fireline and Wet Line Construction
Line width and depth down to mineral soil, and when a wet line will do.
05
Burnout and Backfire
When and where firing operations are triggered, and why timing matters.
06
Air Support Integration
How helicopters and air tankers coordinate with ground crews, drop patterns and retardant lines.
07
Structure Protection Triage
A decision process for which structures can be defended, and how.