Bees and Wasps

In general, bees sting to protect their hive and seldom sting when they are foraging unless they feel threatened (like being swatted at or stepped on). On the other hand, many bees or wasps foraging in one area may indicate a colony is nearby. If you intend to work or camp in the area, scout for bee or wasp nests first.

Colonies vary in behavior over time, especially with changes in season, becoming more aggressive and easily agitated in the late summer and fall. You may pass the same colony for weeks and then one day provoke them unexpectedly.

Look out for colonies:

Bees and wasps nest in a wide variety of locations, such as in pipes or holes, behind shutters, under shingles, within cracks and crevices in trees and rocks, and hanging from branches. Be alert for groups of flying bees entering or leaving an opening and listen for buzzing sounds. Be especially alert when climbing, digging fireline, and moving logs. Do not put your hands where you can't see them.

Be particularly careful when using any heavy equipment that produces sound vibrations, such as chainsaws, weedeaters, and pumps. Keep escape routes in mind.

If you disturb a nest and are being attacked, run away. Use your shroud or shirt to protect your head neck and face. Swatting and waving your arms aggravates bees/wasps more!

About Africanized and European honeybees:

photo of a honey bee

Honeybees are brown, hairy insects, about 5/8-inch long, with black encircling their abdomen, giving them a subtle striped appearance. All honeybees look alike. Only an expert can tell them apart. The sting from a single Africanized honeybee is no more harmful than one from the common garden or European honeybee. Africanized honeybees are known as killer bees because they defend their nests more aggressively, with less provocation, and in larger numbers than other honeybees, so there is a greater chance of receiving many stings.

Africanized honeybees are found in the southwest and are spreading across the southern United States. You are more likely to be struck by lightning than be killed by Africanized bees.

Considerations with all bees and wasps:

If a bee gets in the vehicle while you are driving, stay calm, pull over, and stop to let the bee out.
Keep trash away from your camp and keep it covered.
Look at what you are drinking and eating before you eat or drink. Bees and wasps are attracted to accessible food and water.

If you get stung:

The first thing you should do is remove the stinger. The end of a stinger is barbed and will remain stuck in the skin even if the bee is removed. Muscles in the stinger allow it to continue pumping venom into the victim, even if it is no longer connected to the bee. Do not pull the stinger out with your fingers or tweezers because this will squeeze out more venom. Instead, scrape the stinger out with your fingernail, the edge of a credit card, a dull knife blade, or another straight-edged object.

Two kinds of reactions are usually associated with bee stings and other stinging insects:

Local Reactions:
A local reaction is usually characterized by pain, swelling, redness, and itching, and a welt surrounding the wound made by the stinger. Swelling can sometimes be locally severe. For instance, if stung on the finger, the arm may be swollen even up to the elbow. Swelling such as this is fairly common, even though it may be alarming. Swelling may be reduced by cooling the wound and/or taking an antihistamine such as Benadryl. Topical solutions such as calamine may also help alleviate pain.
Systemic, Allergic, or Life-Threatening Reactions:
Allergic reactions can develop anywhere on the body and may include rash or hives, dizziness or headache, cramps, nausea, vomiting, swelling away from the general area of the sting, shortness of breath, difficulty swallowing, shock, and unconsciousness. If you experience any of these symptoms, seek emergency medical assistance immediately. Symptoms can begin immediately following the sting or up to 30 minutes later and might last for hours.

If you know you are allergic:

Anaphylaxis, if treated in time, usually can be reversed by epinephrine (adrenaline) injected into the body. Individuals who are aware that they are allergic to stings should carry epinephrine in either a normal syringe (sting kit) or an auto-injector (EpiPen) at all times when working outside, and they should communicate their allergy to supervisor/coworkers in case they become incapacitated. Epinephrine is obtainable only by prescription from a physician.

Discussion Topics:

Have you and your crew identified who is allergic to bee/wasp stings? Are they carrying their prescription EpiPen? Identify the EpiPen and its location to the rest of the crew.
If you have an EMT on your crew/team, what are their protocols for treating stings and related allergic reactions?
Discuss how you and your crew will safely flag or mark any identified nests/hives.

Have an idea or feedback?

Share it with the NWCG 6MFS Subcommittee.

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NWCG Latest Announcements

The Experiential Learning Subcommittee is looking for your feedback on Staff Rides

Date: September 20, 2024
Contact: Ashleigh D'Antonio and George Risko, Leadership Committee

The Experiential Learning Subcommittee needs to hear from the field about where the greatest need lies regarding staff rides and their accessibility.

Do you have an event you would like to turn into a learning experience?
Do you have a staff ride built, but are struggling to implement the delivery?
Do you need help building capacity?
What other ideas do you have to support experiential leadership training?

Fill out this short survey below to help us help you.

References:

Staff Rides: Feedback

Staff Rides

Updated NWCG Single Resource Casual Hire Information, PMS 934

Date: September 19, 2024
Contact: Incident Business Committee

The Incident Business Committee has updated the NWCG Single Resource Casual Hire Information, PMS 934. This update expands the provisions for hiring emergency personnel.

References:

NWCG Single Resource Casual Hire Information, PMS 934

IBC Memorandum 24-03

NWCG 2024 Spring/Summer Highlights

Date: September 13, 2024

Welcome to our latest highlights from the National Wildfire Coordinating Group, where we explore the latest updates, insights, and efforts that develop interoperable wildland fire operations among federal, state, local, Tribal, and territorial partners.

The Performance Support Package, which for ABRO includes the Incident Position Standards and Next Generation Position Task Book were developed through the Incident Performance and Training Modernization (IPTM) effort. The Performance Support Package will support trainees, those qualified in the position, and evaluators.

NASA JOINS NWCG!

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is officially an associate member of NWCG. As such, NASA is beginning to collaborate with wildland fire management agencies with the goal of increasing collaboration across agencies and leveraging NASA data, technology, and innovation for nation-wide efforts in wildland fire management. NASA has a rich history of research, development, and technology transfer in the areas of Earth science, space technologies, and aeronautics that support the NWCG mission.

WWW.NWCG.GOV HAS A NEW LOOK AND DESIGN

The NWCG web team dedicated the past two years to making a significant upgrade to the www.nwcg.gov site. This upgrade involved a comprehensive redesign of over 7,700 web pages.

The modernization of NWCG’s website involved migrating to Drupal 10, a cutting—edge content management system, and leveraging Amazon Web Service GovCloud for secure and efficient hosting. These upgrades help ensure that the NWCG website remains current in content management practices, offering enhanced customization, improved performance, and an overall superior user experience.

NWCG Leadership Committee

The Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program announced the Professional Reading Program’s 2024 list!

The years books include:

Young Men and Fire by Norman Maclean
The Wisdom of the Bullfrog by William H. McRaven
The Art of Clear Thinking by Hasard Lee
Emotional Agility by Susan David
Writing to Persuade by Trish Hall

Learn more at the NWCG Leadership Committee

INCIDENT PERFORMANCE AND TRAINING MODERNIZATION

In 2023, NWCG kicked off the Incident Performance and Training Modernization (IPTM) effort. A training system overhaul focused on developing a performance-based training system designed to shift training to on-the-job when appropriate.

Over the next five years, NWCG intends to analyze all positions within the NWCG Standards for Wildland Fire Position Qualifications, PMS 310-1. To date we are currently working on 30 incident positions, and planning for 20+ in calendar year 2025.

Subject Matter Experts from a variety of geographical areas and agencies recently completed the position analysis for 16 positions. From this analysis, Incident Positions Standards and a Next Generation Position Task Book will be developed for each position.

Incident Performance and Training Modernization

NEXT GENERATION POSITION TASK BOOK

In April 2024, NWCG launched the new Next Generation Position Task Book (Next Gen PTB) which is a key component of the IPTM effort. This revised evaluation tool is designed to work in conjunction with the newly developed Incident Position Standards.

Major Next Gen PTB changes:

Structured to improve constructive conversations between evaluators and trainees.
Reference new Incident Position Standards.
Include only tasks required to be evaluated for successful performance.
Trainees will be rated on their performance vs. initialing whether a task was completed.
Must include written feedback when trainee does not meet the standard.
Will be position specific (no combined PTBs).

Screen shot of the Next Gen Position Task Book

Banner image of the Wildland Fire Learning Portal website

NWCG’s training course catalog is now available on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal (WFLP).

To access the training course catalog, visit WFLP and either set up an account or login as a guest.

The Incident Position Standards and Next Generation Position Task Book are now available for Aircraft Base Radio Operator (ABRO)

Date: September 12, 2024
Contact: Interagency Helicopter Operations Subcommittee

NWCG is excited to announce that the NWCG Incident Position Standards for Aircraft Base Radio Operator, PMS 350-87 and NWCG Position Task Book for Aircraft Base Radio Operator (ABRO), PMS 311-87 are now available.

References:

NWCG Aircraft Base Radio Operator Position Page

NWCG Incident Position Standards for Aircraft Base Radio Operator, PMS 350-87

NWCG Position Task Book for Aircraft Base Radio Operator, PMS 311-87

6MFS

Bees and Wasps

Look out for colonies:

About Africanized and European honeybees:

​Considerations with all bees and wasps:

If you get stung:

Two kinds of reactions are usually associated with bee stings and other stinging insects:

If you know you are allergic:

Discussion Topics:

Additional Resources

Have an idea or feedback?

Share it with the NWCG 6MFS Subcommittee.

NWCG Latest Announcements

References:

References:

NASA JOINS NWCG!

WWW.NWCG.GOV HAS A NEW LOOK AND DESIGN

NWCG Leadership Committee

INCIDENT PERFORMANCE AND TRAINING MODERNIZATION

NEXT GENERATION POSITION TASK BOOK

References:

NWCG National Wildfire Coordinating Group

Considerations with all bees and wasps:

NWCG

National Wildfire Coordinating Group