2025 Fall Nebraska Wildland Fire Academy

The Fall Nebraska Wildland Fire Academy is an excellent and convenient opportunity for agencies, volunteer fire departments, and private individuals in the eastern half of Nebraska to benefit from training not readily available in their region. This academy provides quality training from highly respected and experienced instructors from agencies throughout the state and from around the country to ensure training needs for wildland firefighters are met. We encourage all agencies, volunteer fire departments, and private individuals from the surrounding states and regions to come and participate.

All classes are National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) accredited courses.

Info: S-212, Wildland Fire Chainsaws: This is an instructor-led course intended to be presented at the local level. The course lessons provide introduction to the function, maintenance and use of internal combustion engine powered chainsaws, and their tactical wildland fire application. Field exercises support entry level training for firefighters with little or no previous experience in operating a chainsaw, providing hands-on cutting experience in surroundings similar to fireline situations.

Info: S-131, Firefighter Type 1: This course is designed to meet the training needs of the Firefighter Type 1 (FFT1) and/or Incident Commander Type 5 (ICT5). Topics include operational leadership, communications, LCES, and tactical decision-making.

Info: S-130, Firefighter Training: The intent of this course is to train new firefighters in basic firefighting skills. This includes a required field exercise that may be arduous in nature.


S-190, Introduction to Wildland Fire Behavior: This is the first and foundational wildland fire behavior course in a five-course sequence in the NWCG curriculum. It introduces students to the basic concepts of wildland fire behavior, including:

• The primary wildland fire environment components: fuels, weather, and topography;

• How characteristics and interactions of fuels, weather, and topography affect fire behavior;

• How fire behavior affects risk to firefighters.


L-180, Human Factors in the Wildland Fire Service: The course is specifically designed for entry-level operational personnel; however, this course also applies to all wildland fire service personnel, including non-operational personnel.

At the end of the course, students will be able to practice decision-making skills in an interactive

Info: The S-219 course introduces the roles and responsibilities of a Firing Boss, Single Resource (FIRB), and outlines duties of other personnel who may engage firing operations. The course discusses and illustrates common firing devices and techniques. Although comprehensive in nature, the course work is not a substitute for the dynamic fire environment. The course provides students with important information regarding general tasks required to be successful.

Info: S-230, Crew Boss (Single Resource): This is a classroom course designed to produce student proficiency in the performance of duties associated with the single resource boss position from initial dispatch through demobilization to the home unit. Topics include operational leadership, preparation and mobilization, assignment preparation, risk management, entrapment avoidance, safety and tactics, offline duties, demobilization, and post-incident responsibilities.

Info: S-231, Engine Boss (Single Resource): This is a skill course designed to produce student proficiency in the performance of the duties associated with Engine Boss, Single Resource (ENGB). Topics include engine and crew capabilities and limitations, information sources, fire size up considerations, tactics, and wildland/urban interface.

Info: Red Card Class-Field Portion: This class is designed for students that have successfully completed the online version of S-190, S-130, L-180 through the Wildland Fire Learning Portal (WFLP) to complete the required hands-on skills of the training.

Also check out other Workshops in Ponca, Nonprofit events in Ponca.