Wildfire Response

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National Guard Members Continue LA Wildfire Response
January 21, 2025 — LOS ANGELES – U.S. Army Sgt. Ricardo Hernandez watched from a cross street as sporadic traffic... MORE

U.S. Army Sgt. Bryce Carter, an infantryman with C Company, 1st Battalion, 160th Infantry Regiment, California Army National Guard, sharpens the blade of a hoe to clear brush and other debris as part of remediation efforts along the Mulholland Trail near Tarzana, California, in the aftermath of the Palisades Fire, Jan. 18, 2025. Carter and other members of his unit were assisting CALFIRE in mop-up efforts, which included clearing brush and backfilling firebreaks and other areas to prevent mudslides and reduce the impact of firefighting efforts.

California Guardsman Helps Battle Wildfires in His Community
January 16, 2025 — CHANNEL ISLANDS AIR NATIONAL GUARD STATION, Calif. - Amid the wildfire crisis in California, an Air... MORE

Master Sgt. Alan Franklin, a commander's support Airman with the 146th Airlift Wing, speaks to 1st Lt. Aiden Flores about the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System mission on the flightline at Channel Islands Air National Guard Station, Port Hueneme, California, Jan. 13, 2025. MAFFS aircraft from the Air National Guard’s 153rd Airlift Wing, Cheyenne, Wyoming, the 152nd Airlift Wing, Reno, Nevada, the 146th Airlift Wing, Port Hueneme, California, and Air Force Reserve Command’s 302 AW, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, are working together to combat fires in the Los Angeles area.

National Guard Bureau Chief Thanks Firefighting Guardsmen
January 14, 2025 — CHANNEL ISLANDS AIR NATIONAL GUARD STATION, Calif. – The National Guard is part of a multi-agency... MORE

Air Force Gen. Steve Nordhaus, chief, National Guard Bureau, and Army Senior Enlisted Advisor John Raines, SEA to the CNGB, visit National Guard members supporting wildland firefighting in Southern California, Channel Islands Air National Guard Station, Calif., Jan. 11, 2025. Thousands of National Guardsmen are involved in multiple air and ground firefighting in the Los Angeles Basin and Southern California.

Wyoming, Nevada Guard Aircrews Assist California Firefighters
January 13, 2025 — CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Three Wyoming Air National Guard C-130s equipped with the U.S. Forest Service’s... MORE

U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the 153rd Airlift Wing load and install the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems onto a C-130H Hercules aircraft in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Jan. 10, 2025, in preparation to support firefighting efforts in the Los Angeles area.

California, Nevada, Wyoming Guard Join Firefighting Battle
January 10, 2025 — MOFFETT AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Calif. - Hundreds of National Guard members are now involved in... MORE

U.S. Air Force Airmen with the 129th Rescue Wing, California Air National Guard, at Moffett Air National Guard Base, Calif., prepare an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter to help battle the Palisades Fire Jan. 9, 2025.

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Video by Petty Officer 2nd Class Johans Chavarro

Plight of the Shearwater

Navy Public Affairs Support Element Detachment Hawaii

Nov. 5, 2015 | 5:43

Currently the Newell Shearwater is one of four endangered seabirds on Kauai. Nesting in the most remote mountains and ridges of Kauai, Newell’s Shearwaters are pelagic sea birds, spending most of their lives at sea, flying over land only during total darkness. Similarly, armed with only their inborn navigational skills, young fledglings will fly out to sea for the first time ever in total darkness, using the stars and moon to find their way to the sea. Unfortunately, human development, with all of its artificial lighting, has caused these young fledgling birds to be confused as they fly out to sea for their first time. As a result, Pacific Missile Range Facility Barking Sands (PMRF), has become increasingly involved in conservation efforts to assist in preserving the Newell Shearwater population. These efforts include a “Dark Skies Program,” in which all non-mission critical lights are turned off, or shielded, during the time of the year young fledglings take to the sea. PMRF has also implemented another new strategy this year to complement the dark skies program — radar ornithology. PMRF uses the radar at night to determine the flight passage of Newell’s Shearwaters overhead through radar. By using these specialized radars, researchers are able to determine not only the number of birds flying overhead, but also the direction they are going. Scientists conclude without intervention, their populations are sure to continue to decrease.