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Selecting Your Deployment Site

The characteristics of an effective deployment site have not changed. Your goal in selecting a deployment site is to keep the fire shelter away from heat, especially flames. Practice evaluating deployment sites so that you can recognize them quickly under stress. Identify effective sites whenever you are on the fireline so you know where they are before you need one.

A rocky mountain forest

1. Keep away from narrow draws, chutes, and chimneys. They tend to funnel smoke, flames, and hot gases that can damage your shelter.

A rocky mountain forest

2. Avoid saddles on ridgetops. They also funnel smoke and heat.


A dirt road in through wildland forest.

3. Flat areas on slopes, such as benches, or road cuts, offer some protection from radiant and convective heat. These level areas can keep you below the path of flame and convective heat. Do not deploy in the middle of a road if vehicles may be passing. A drainage ditch on the uphill side of a road cut can be an effective deployment site unless it contains fuels that could ignite and burn the shelter. Four firefighters deployed their fire shelters on this road during a burnover. All four survived with only minor burns.

A rocky mountain forest

4. Stay out of draws, even when deploying on a road.


Birds eye view of a smoke rising above trees in a forest
A rockslide with tall trees in the forefront
A rocky mountain forest.
5. Try to pick natural firebreaks such as wet meadows, wide streambeds, swampy areas, and rockslides.


A rocky mountain forest
A rocky mountain forest
6. Do not deploy in or next to tall or thick grass, small trees, trees with low branches, brush, piles of slash, or firefighting equipment such as packs, parachutes, tools, or chain saws. Firefighters have been burned because they deployed too close to such fuels. Large rockslides can be effective deployment sites, but you must stay away from brush and trees, and from fuels scattered in the rocks. Even though it can be difficult to hold the edges of the shelter down, large, jumbled rocks, rockslides sometimes offer the largest area free of fuels and may be the best option for deployment.


A rocky mountain forest

7. Ground fuels, such as grass, or tree litter, can ignite rapidly. Clear the deployment site to mineral soil if time allows. If time is critical, pick a site with the sparsest fuels.

A rocky mountain forest

8. Deploy fire shelters well away from thick vegetation such as the shrubby understory and trees.


A rocky mountain forest

9. Boulders, large rocks, buildings, vehicles, and equipment can provide buffers from the heat of the fire. Keep in mind that when vehicles, equipment, and buildings catch fire, they burn hot, and for a much longer duration than the vegetation around them. This can lead to shelters being exposed to heat for a prolonged period, well after the flame front has passed. This may keep firefighters in their shelters longer, exposed to prolonged levels of dangerous heat.

A rocky mountain forest

10. Avoid areas where rocks or logs can roll on you or snags can fall on you.


A rocky mountain forest

11. The lee side of a ridgetop can be an effective deployment site because the flames and hot gases tend to rise above the ridge. Fire intensity usually drops when fire reaches a ridge. But be alert for the possibility that firebrands might ignite fires below you on the lee side of the ridge.

A rocky mountain forest

12. Burned-out areas can be effective deployment sites if there is no fuel left to reburn. Be aware of residual heat and hotspots on the ground. Scrape the ground if possible to clear away any heat and burning materials. Burn injuries have occurred from firefighters deploying in the black that was still hot.


A rocky mountain forest
A rocky mountain forest
13. Wide areas that have been cleared of fuel, such as dozer lines or roads, can be good deployment sites, depending on the size of the area that has been cleared and the behavior of the fire.

 

A rocky mountain forest
A rocky mountain forest
14. Bodies of water can be adequate deployment zones, however you should be aware of several hazards if you find yourself having to use a body of water. Deployments can last from several minutes to an hour or more. If the water is over your head in depth, you may be at higher risk of drowning especially once your boots and clothing become waterlogged. Since water removes heat from the body much faster than air, you may be at risk of hypothermia from deployments in bodies of water. If there is a current to the water your fire shelter may be hard to hold on to or you may become entangled in your shelter and drown. The fire shelter’s ends can fill with water and become very heavy. For further information read this tech tip on deploying in bodies of water.

 

 
 

NWCG Latest Announcements

ETC Bulletin 25-001: Retrofitted Hot/Cold Beverage Kits - 2025 Field Season

Date: April 16, 2025
Questions?  Please contact:
Equipment Technology Committee

Due to spout failures and the associated risk of burn injuries, manufacturers have retrofitted the Hot/Cold Beverage Kits using a heat-shrinking band to secure the black spout at the insertion site. The updated kits feature a fluorescent label on each full kit assembly for easy identification. Catering units are encouraged to confirm the clear heat-shrinking bands are intact around each spout before filling.

ETC Bulletin 24-001 regarding Hot/Cold Beverage Kits has been archived and replaced by ETC Bulletin 25-001 for the 2025 season.

References:

NWCG Alerts

ETC-EB-25-001 Retrofitted Hot/Cold Beverage Kits

NWCG Standards for Wildland Fire Chainsaw Operations, PMS 212, and Next Generation Position Task Book for Basic Faller Are Now Available

Date: April 14, 2025
Questions?  Please contact:
Hazard Tree and Tree Felling Subcommittee

The updated NWCG Standards for Wildland Fire Chainsaw Operations, PMS 212, and NWCG Position Task Book for Basic Faller (FAL3), PMS 311-19 are now available.

The NWCG Standards for Wildland Fire Chainsaw Operations, PMS 212 includes position standards designed to be used in conjunction with the Next Generation Position Task Book (Next Gen PTB). The Next Gen PTB for Basic Faller (FAL3) includes an evaluation guide with suggested rating elements to consider when assessing trainees.

References:

NWCG Standards For Wildland Fire Chainsaw Operations, PMS 212

NWCG Position Task Book for Basic Faller (FAL3), PMS 311-119

NWCG Basic Faller (FAL3)

RMC Memo 25-01: Summary of Updates to Safety Officer Positions

Date: April 9, 2025
Questions?  Please contact:
RMC Member Eric Fransted

The Risk Management Committee (RMC) serves as the position steward for all Safety Officer incident positions and continues to improve position standards, training, and naming conventions. The implementation of Complex Incident Management (CIM) required changes to position titles. RMC collaborated with the NWCG Incident Position Standards Committee (IPSC) to propose and implement these updates. 

References:

RMC Memo 25-01: Summary of Updates to Safety Officer Positions 

NWCG Position Catalog

Updated, NWCG Guide to Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination, PMS 412

Date: April 8, 2025
Questions?  Please contact:
Wildland Fire Investigation Subcommittee

PMS 412 provides guidance for wildland fire investigations. This guide outlines recommended procedures, practices, techniques, and methods to promote a systematic approach. The last update to this publication was in 2016.

References:

NWCG Guide to Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination PMS 412