The U.S. Department of the Interior announced on January 12th that Brian Fennessy, former Orange County Fire Authority Chief from Altadena, Los Angeles, will be responsible for establishing the new U.S. Wildland Fire Service.
With nearly 50 years of firefighting experience, Fennessy’s most recent firsthand experience with wildfires was during the 2025 Eaton and Palisades fires in Southern California, which collectively destroyed over 12,000 structures and resulted in 31 fatalities. In a statement, Fennessy emphasized the importance of coordinated efforts, clear directives, and swift actions in responding to wildfires.
Prior to this role, Fennessy served as the Chief of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department and began his career with the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. As a highly experienced firefighter, he has led wildfire suppression, aerial operations, and emergency response efforts during some of the most challenging wildfire seasons in California.
Fennessy retired from the Orange County Fire Authority on January 2nd to assume the position of Chief of the newly established Wildland Fire Service. In his resignation letter to staff, he highlighted the historic opportunity the formation of the U.S. Wildland Fire Service presents in enhancing interagency coordination, modernizing operational capabilities, and elevating the status of wildland firefighting as a profession.
The U.S. Department of the Interior stated that the establishment of the U.S. Wildland Fire Service comes in response to the escalating scale and intensity of wildfires, aiming to integrate the nation’s wildfire response system. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum expressed gratitude to President Trump’s leadership in taking decisive actions to strengthen coordination and preparedness when facing the increasing challenges of wildfires.
Currently, the management of wildland fire is dispersed among various agencies and offices within the Department of the Interior, including the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Office of Aviation Services, and Office of Wildland Fire. While these agencies collaborate, a higher level of coordination is still needed.
On June 12, 2025, President Trump signed the executive order “Empowering Commonsense Wildfire Prevention and Response,” outlining his priority of modernizing wildfire response across the nation. The order called for streamlining wildfire response efforts to effectively utilize firefighting departments, programs, budgets, procurement, research, and other measures.
According to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, in 2025, the global area burned by wildfires approached 390 million hectares, roughly equivalent to 92% of the land area of the European Union. The organization also reported that natural disasters last year resulted in overall losses amounting to $224 billion. ◇