Firefighter Staffing Crisis: The Need to Recruit, Train, and Retain Volunteers

 Firefighters put themselves at significant risk, often with little financial compensation. Most of the nation’s fire departments are volunteer-based, meaning firefighters may receive only a small stipend for responding to emergencies. In some communities, that might be around $25 show up for fighting a fire, even if they spend eight hours in the elements rolling and pulling hoses, searching structures, and working in dangerous conditions. A special kind of devoted volunteers willingly sign up for that.

(Illustrative only)

Just saying this type of
activity can create
qualified leaders.
 

The staffing problem becomes even more apparent during major wildfires, when departments need additional personnel but often struggle to find enough qualified people. As extreme weather and large-scale fires appear to be becoming more frequent, regardless of how one views the causes, the demands on fire departments are likely to increase. At the same time, recruiting and retaining volunteers is becoming more difficult because the work requires significant training and carries substantial personal risk.

Low compensation is another major challenge. In some cases, someone could make considerably more working at a fast-food restaurant than volunteering as a firefighter. We need to think creatively about how to attract and retain people in these fields. For younger people who may not want to pursue military service, firefighting could provide another pathway. Some states have already experimented with incentives such as college assistance, and similar programs could be expanded.

For example, firefighters could receive free or subsidized college tuition after serving a specified number of years. Departments could also provide valuable technical training, such as mechanics, emergency equipment maintenance, or other certifications, in exchange for a commitment to serve (I sort of thought pairing firefighting training with leadership training-team building might work. 🤷). All that seem to strengthen responder capacity. These programs could give young people practical skills while strengthening the volunteer firefighting workforce.

Ultimately, communities need to consider the costs of hiring more full-time firefighters versus expanding volunteer programs through stipends, on-call pay, training incentives, and other forms of compensation. Either way, we are going to need more people capable of doing this work.

If you are interested in supporting a fire department in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula that currently has 12 young recruits who need training and equipment, send me a message to the right. I can connect you with the appropriate people.

U.S. Firefighters Face Critical Staffing Shortage Amid Severe Wildfire Season

• The U.S. Forest Service is facing a significant firefighter shortage as the 2026 wildfire season intensifies, with crews reporting that staffing levels are insufficient to meet growing demands.
• Recruitment and retention problems have been worsened by low pay, difficult working conditions, and employee departures; the Forest Service reportedly lost nearly half of its permanent workforce between 2021 and 2024.
• The shortage extends beyond frontline firefighters to experienced managers and supervisors, creating coordination problems and leaving some available equipment and contracted resources unused.
• The 2026 wildfire season has placed additional pressure on the system, with more than 49,200 fires burning over 7.2 million acres by August and more than 600 resource requests going unfilled during one 72-hour period.
• Staffing shortages are also limiting prevention efforts, including prescribed burns, raising concerns that inadequate investment in the firefighting workforce could make future wildfire seasons even more difficult to manage.

Canon, G. (2026, August 19). Firefighters sound alarm as US faces critical staffing shortage: ‘We don’t have enough people’. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/19/us-firefighters-staffing-shortage