The Fire We Never Trained For

On a quiet Sunday in Idaho, two firefighters were ambushed and killed—not while storming into a burning building, but while responding to a brush fire intentionally set to lure them in. A third remains in critical condition. As a former firefighter, I’ve seen a lot—but this? This is a new kind of hell.

This episode is not a rant. It’s a gut-level tribute to Battalion Chief John Morrison and Battalion Chief Frank Harwood—simple, honorable men who wore the uniform with pride until their final call. We’ll talk about what happened, why this matters beyond Idaho, and what it says about the threats facing first responders in today’s America.

This was a rural response, not an urban war zone. And yet, the war came anyway.

We owe our firefighters—and all first responders—more than back-page headlines and a moment of silence.