Forest Fire Management and Prevention Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Emergency Management Officers, Forestry and Land Management Professionals and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-DRM-016

Before you join: Participants should have basic familiarity with their organisation's emergency procedures, operating sites, land assets or public safety responsibilities.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Wildfire incidents can threaten lives, critical infrastructure, business continuity, biodiversity, water catchments and public confidence within hours. Organisations responsible for land, facilities, utilities, transport corridors, industrial sites or community safety need more than firefighting capability. They need a disciplined system for identifying fire risk, reducing ignition sources and fuel loads, preparing command arrangements, protecting people, and coordinating recovery after an incident.

This five-day Forest Fire Management and Prevention Training Course develops the practical knowledge needed to plan and manage wildfire risk before, during and after an event. Participants examine fire behaviour, fuel conditions, weather interpretation, risk assessment, prevention controls, prescribed burning, incident command, suppression safety, evacuation planning, public warnings, damage assessment and recovery coordination. The course applies recognised methods including the Incident Command System, Canadian Fire Weather Index System, ISO 31000 risk principles and Common Alerting Protocol message fields.

Teaching combines instructor briefings with case analysis, facilitated group work, planning simulations and structured reviews of realistic fire scenarios. Cases can be adapted to forestry operations, municipalities, protected areas, mining sites, utility networks, agriculture, industrial estates and humanitarian settings. Participants leave with a practical wildfire risk and preparedness pack containing templates and decision tools that can be adapted for their own site, jurisdiction or operating area.

The course is suited to professionals with responsibility for emergency preparedness, environmental protection, land management, infrastructure resilience, security, business continuity or public safety. It is particularly relevant where wildfire risk affects dispersed assets, communities near vegetation, critical services or high-value natural resources.

What you will be able to do

  • Assess wildfire hazards using exposure, vulnerability and likelihood-consequence analysis
  • Interpret fire weather, fuel and terrain indicators to anticipate fire behaviour
  • Develop ignition prevention controls and fuel management priorities
  • Prepare an Incident Action Plan using Incident Command System structures
  • Apply LCES principles and suppression safety controls during wildfire operations
  • Design evacuation, warning and public information arrangements for fire emergencies
  • Conduct post-fire damage and loss assessments to support recovery decisions
  • Produce a site-specific wildfire risk reduction and preparedness action plan

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Make defensible wildfire risk decisions using documented evidence and criteria
  • Recognise weather and fuel conditions that require higher readiness levels
  • Contribute effectively to incident command briefings and action planning
  • Plan evacuation and warning arrangements for vulnerable people and critical sites
  • Build a practical 90-day wildfire preparedness improvement plan

For your organisation

  • Reduced likelihood of preventable ignitions from operations, visitors and infrastructure
  • Clearer responsibilities for prevention, preparedness, response and recovery
  • Better protection of personnel, communities, assets and environmental resources
  • Faster mobilisation through defined command, resource and mutual-aid arrangements
  • Stronger audit evidence for fire risk controls, expenditure and corrective actions

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can explain how fuels, weather and topography influence wildfire behaviour and operational risk.

  • Wildland fire triangle: fuels, weather, topography and ignition interactions
  • Classify surface, ground and crown fires using observable behaviour indicators
  • Rate of spread, flame length and fireline intensity calculations
  • Fuel moisture content and live-dead fuel distinctions for suppression decisions
  • Topographic alignment, slope and aspect effects on fire spread
  • Ignition source profiling from human activity, infrastructure and lightning records

Participants can build a documented wildfire risk assessment and prioritised control register.

  • Hazard, exposure and vulnerability framing under ISO 31000 risk principles
  • Map values at risk: people, assets, ecosystems and services
  • Likelihood-consequence matrices calibrated with local fire history and uncertainty
  • GIS risk layers combining fuels, terrain, access and critical infrastructure
  • Scenario analysis for wind-driven fires, drought periods and multiple ignitions
  • Risk registers assign controls, owners, due dates and residual ratings

Participants can interpret fire weather information and translate it into readiness decisions.

  • Interpret temperature, humidity, wind and precipitation from fire weather observations
  • Canadian Fire Weather Index System components and operational meaning
  • Atmospheric stability, inversions and plume behaviour affecting smoke dispersion
  • Identify dry thunderstorms, foehn winds and frontal passage warning signs
  • Spot forecasts translated into staffing, patrol and suppression readiness
  • Weather thresholds documented within trigger-action-response contingency plans

Participants can design prevention measures that address priority ignition sources and behaviours.

  • Ignition prevention hierarchy: eliminate, substitute, engineer, administer and enforce controls
  • Cause investigation records distinguish accidental, negligent, deliberate and natural ignitions
  • Industrial hot-work permits and vegetation clearance around ignition sources
  • Public communication campaigns target burning, smoking, machinery and recreation behaviours
  • Enforcement patrol plans align restrictions, penalties, evidence and reporting
  • Evaluate prevention measures through ignition trends, compliance and near-miss reports

Participants can select and monitor fuel management measures appropriate to risk priorities.

  • Fuel treatment objectives linked to expected fire behaviour and asset priorities
  • Prescribed burning plans specify prescriptions, permits, smoke and contingency actions
  • Mechanical thinning, pruning and grazing compared by treatment constraints
  • Defensible space zones designed around buildings, utilities and evacuation routes
  • Firebreak placement considers terrain, access, maintenance and ecological impacts
  • Monitor treatment effectiveness using fuel loads, continuity and regeneration indicators

Participants can establish command, resource and readiness arrangements for wildfire incidents.

  • Incident Command System roles, span of control and command transfer
  • Prepare incident action plans with objectives, tactics, resources and safety
  • Operational periods structure briefings, assignments, reporting and resource tracking
  • Mutual-aid agreements define activation, reimbursement, communications and demobilisation procedures
  • Resource typing identifies engines, crews, aircraft and specialist capabilities
  • Readiness inspections verify equipment, PPE, communications and water supplies

Participants can apply safe suppression decision principles and crew protection measures.

  • Anchor-flank-pincher principles applied to direct, indirect and parallel attack
  • LCES: lookouts, communications, escape routes and safety zones selection
  • Escape-time calculations compare travel time against fire spread projections
  • Situational awareness uses briefing discipline, lookout reports and changing indicators
  • Structure triage prioritises life safety, defensible properties and strategic assets
  • Crew welfare addresses heat stress, fatigue, hydration and shift limits

Participants can prepare coordinated evacuation and warning arrangements for wildfire emergencies.

  • Protective-action decisions distinguish shelter, phased evacuation and full evacuation
  • Evacuation zone design incorporates routes, transport needs and vulnerable populations
  • Warning messages apply CAP fields, protective actions and accessible language
  • Traffic management plans coordinate contraflow, checkpoints, signage and emergency access
  • Joint information arrangements align incident updates, media briefings and rumour control
  • Re-entry criteria address residual hazards, utilities, health and security

Participants can assess priority impacts and coordinate early recovery after a wildfire.

  • Rapid damage assessment separates life safety, habitability and infrastructure impacts
  • Post-fire hazards include ash runoff, debris flows and hazardous trees
  • Damage and loss data supports assistance claims and recovery prioritisation
  • Watershed stabilisation measures reduce erosion, sediment and water contamination
  • Recovery coordination assigns responsibilities across utilities, housing and environmental agencies
  • After-action reviews capture observations, corrective actions, owners and completion dates

Participants can strengthen wildfire governance and schedule priority improvements for their workplace.

  • Wildfire governance maps statutory duties, authorities, approvals and accountability
  • Budget prioritisation compares prevention, preparedness, response and recovery investments
  • Performance indicators track ignitions, response times, treatment coverage and losses
  • Audit trails document decisions, resource records, safety controls and expenditure
  • Stakeholder agreements establish landowner, utility, community and agency responsibilities
  • Personal 90-day action plan schedules priority improvements and evidence reviews

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Wildfire risk assessment template
  2. Ignition prevention control register
  3. Fuel management decision matrix
  4. Incident Action Plan template
  5. Evacuation and warning checklist
  6. 90-day wildfire preparedness action plan

Who should attend

  • Emergency Management Officers — need to coordinate wildfire preparedness, response and recovery arrangements
  • Forestry and Land Management Professionals — need to reduce ignition risk and manage fuels
  • HSE Managers — need to protect personnel, facilities and operational continuity
  • Municipal and Civil Protection Staff — need to plan warnings, evacuations and public communication
  • Utility and Infrastructure Managers — need to protect networks, corridors and critical service assets
  • Environmental and Sustainability Managers — need to manage fire impacts on ecosystems and compliance duties

Skills and tools covered

Wildfire risk assessmentFire weather interpretationFuel management planningIncident command coordinationEvacuation planningPost-fire recovery

Tools and standards

Incident Command System, ISO 31000, Canadian Fire Weather Index System, Common Alerting Protocol

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to establish fire-management methods, followed by case work, facilitated group exercises, map-based planning tasks and incident simulations. Participants assess fire scenarios using weather, fuel, terrain, infrastructure and population information. They prepare risk controls, incident objectives, evacuation arrangements and recovery priorities using structured templates. Instructor feedback focuses on decision criteria, safety controls, command discipline and documentation quality. Time is also allocated for application planning so participants can adapt course outputs to their own responsibilities.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic familiarity with their organisation's emergency procedures, operating sites, land assets or public safety responsibilities. Experience in emergency management, environmental management, facilities, forestry, civil protection, security, business continuity or operational supervision is useful. Participants should be able to read basic maps, interpret written procedures and contribute to planning discussions. Prior firefighting experience is not required. The course does not assume technical expertise in meteorology, GIS, fire science, aircraft operations or prescribed burning, although experienced practitioners will be able to apply the methods at greater depth.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should understand their own operational, environmental, emergency management or facility responsibilities. Firefighting qualifications and specialist meteorology knowledge are not required.

Bring any available site maps, emergency plans, fire-risk records, fuel management procedures or incident reports that you can share appropriately. These materials help you relate the course tools to your own responsibilities.

The course suits professionals responsible for land, facilities, infrastructure, public safety, environmental protection, emergency preparedness or business continuity. It also benefits managers who oversee contractors, communities or assets exposed to wildfire risk.

This course focuses on management, prevention, preparedness, command arrangements, evacuation and recovery planning. It does not provide operational firefighter certification, live-fire training or technical instruction for operating suppression equipment.

Participants can use the templates to review wildfire risks, record prevention controls, clarify response roles and improve readiness procedures. The final application plan identifies practical actions, owners and review evidence for the following 90 days.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. Time is divided across ten modules covering risk, prevention, fuel management, preparedness, response safety, evacuation, recovery and governance.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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