Third Crew of Wildland Firefighters Help Battle Minnesota Fires

08:23AM / Sunday, August 30, 2026Print Story | Email Story

CARLISLE — Governor Maura Healey announced that Massachusetts is sending a third crew of specially trained wildland firefighters to northern Minnesota to help fight ongoing fires in the region.

The 15-person team includes firefighters from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game's (DFG) Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife). Massachusetts has already deployed two crews, to assist with the fires in Minnesota, and several firefighters from the first crew are volunteering to return for a second deployment.

"I'm incredibly proud of our Massachusetts firefighters, including several who are volunteering to head back to Minnesota for a second time," said Governor Maura Healey. "They are leaving their families and putting themselves in harm's way to help communities that need them. We're grateful for their service and wish them a safe deployment."

Five large wildfires continue to burn across the Boundary Waters region of northern Minnesota, including the Bear Trap Fire, which extends into Ontario, Canada. Together, the July Lighting Fires span more than 65,000 acres and have drawn more than 750 personnel as part of a coordinated response.

The Massachusetts team includes 11-person wildland suppression crew and a four-person engine team, all of who meet federal wildland firefighting standards. During the approximately 14-day deployment, the crew may build fire breaks, secure fire perimeters, contain fires and protect structures. All members have completed federal wildland firefighting training and passed required physical fitness testing.

"Massachusetts' firefighters are again lending support to our partners in other states," said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper. "Drought and dry conditions are worsening fire risk across the country. Some areas are in need of more capacity as they combat wildfires at a much bigger scale. These trends speak to how climate change puts strain on our first responders. We stand with them and are ready to send our support to communities in need."

Since 1985, DCR's Bureau of Forest Fire Control and Forestry, in partnership with U.S. Forest Service and the Northeast Forest Fire Protection Commission, has been sending crews to fight fires across North America. In recent years Massachusetts firefighting personnel have been deployed to multiple wildfires, including fires in Montana, Idaho, California, Oregon, Arizona, as well as Canada. Last year, DCR and DFG sent a 20-person crew to Fairbanks, Alaska,, for a two-week deployment. In each case, Massachusetts firefighters are able to apply the unique skills they have learned in service at home and acquire new techniques and expertise they can bring back to address future fires.

In the fall of 2025, Chief Fire Warden Dave Celino and the DCR wildland firefighters received the Fire Marshall's award at the 36th annual Firefighter of the Year awards in recognition of the experience, expertise and firefighting resources they contributed to state's efforts to combat the historic fires that burned 4,000 acres across Massachusetts during the 2024 wildfire season.

The responding Massachusetts firefighters are:?

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Fenton: Governor's Council Must Deliver for the Berkshires

Community submissionGuest Column
10:22AM / Friday, August 28, 2026

I am a Springfield lawyer running for Governor's Council and I am asking for Berkshire County residents to support me over an incumbent from North Adams.

Here's why: Last year I learned about staffing issues in our regional courts that I could not ignore. In 2025, it was reported that four of Western Massachusetts' 11 Superior Court judgeships were vacant, all at the same time. A few weeks later, that grew to five vacancies. This meant there were only six Superior Court judges serving all of Western Mass at a time when Berkshire, Hampshire, Franklin, and Hampden counties had more than 100 pending homicide cases.

Those numbers were alarming to me, so I started to engage with leaders in the community who work most closely with the court system and I came to learn that these vacancies were only the tip of the iceberg here in Berkshire County.

I learned that no Superior Court or District Court judge had been appointed from the Berkshires since the current incumbent took office. As a result, there is not a single Superior Court judge who lives in the Berkshires today, and several of the District Court judges drive in from other counties to support Berkshire courts in Pittsfield, Great Barrington, and North Adams. Court staff also informed me about severe staffing shortages at the Berkshire Clerk of Courts office resulting in other counties needing to loan staff to the Berkshires just so hardworking employees can take a brief and planned summer vacation. This is not normal. These issues are a reflection of genuine problems with the Berkshire County court system and show a lack of proactive attention from our Governor's Councilor.

Instead of focusing on regional equity, I watched as the current incumbent celebrated that she has voted against the governor's nominees more than any other councilor, without much explanation as to why. Most recently, she voted against two extremely qualified former prosecutors for the Parole Board. This was despite an in-person plea from the governor and a letter of support from all the three of the district attorney's from Western Mass. Those votes do not show independence or standing up for principles, they demonstrate naivete, and an unwillingness to work with the key stakeholders.

I had seen and heard enough. I decided to jump in the race and challenge the incumbent to address these problems head-on.

I am a partner of a regional law firm. I understand our courts and the importance of having qualified, fair and hardworking judges. And I know how important it is to have judges from the Berkshires serving the Berkshires. To achieve that, you need strong relationships with the legal community and local stakeholders. You need to know how to use the power of the Governor's Council to fight forcefully for our region. And you need to be laser focused on identifying vacancies before they occur so that they can be filled quickly with local candidates.

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