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2024 Wildfires:

Recovery from wildfire is unfortunately neither a simple nor a quick process. This page is a starting point to find resources before, during and following a fire. It is important to note there are many complexities and unique circumstances that frustrate simple, straightforward answers after a fire. Every landowner’s situation is unique.

Recovery after this year’s many fires will take time. Wyoming’s large fires this year have burned federal and state lands, but also an extraordinary amount of private lands. The various resources that we hope will become increasingly available are contingent upon federal agency determinations along with specifics in federal law; available state programs and appropriations; and the interplay of all of these with each other as they apply to federal, state, and/or private lands. Moreover, it may take time for reliable information to be developed on the ground to better inform how best to treat recovery, even in the next year.

The information, resources, and links assembled on this web page will be updated from time to time as more accurate and refined information becomes available.

Contact a USDA Service Center

Contacting your local USDA Service Center is the first recommendation for producers who face damage from wildfires. Centers are listed by county.

It is crucial that you talk with someone about your particular situation. They can help you find assistance efficiently and effectively. A representative may have you come into their office or someone might come visit you on your property.

Do not struggle on your own - these USDA Service Center experts will help you through a one-stop approach to many agencies you may need to work with, including:

Other Help to Contact

Depending on your specific needs, you may also benefit from contacting your local:

County Weed and Pest
County UW Extension Office
Wyoming Game and Fish Department (wildlife, hunting or access)

Contact Your Insurance Company and Banks

Contact your insurance company, bank or other relevant institutions to discuss circumstances and timelines, and to learn about other steps that need to be taken.

Make and Keep Extensive Records

Create an inventory of property lost due to fire. You will want to take date and time-stamped photos and make written notes. In these notes make observations of the losses - for example, if you are documenting loss of fencing, include the types of fencing, materials, distance and location.

Communication with USDA agencies and your insurance company will help guide your documentation efforts and provide you with the forms you need. Your inventory may include the following:

• Fence
• Equipment
• Stored Feed
• Pasture
• Livestock
• Tack
• Tools
• Supplies such as fence material, PVC pipe, etc.
• Heirlooms such as old saddles, antiques, etc.
• Other valuable items

Financial Resources for Agricultural Producers

Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool (USDA): Learn about USDA disaster assistance programs that might be right for you by completing five simple steps.

Wyoming Stock Growers Wildfire Relief Fund: Wildfire Relief Fund to assist Wyoming livestock producers who have been impacted by major fires in 2024.

Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) (USDA - NRCS): For lands that are part of a private agricultural operation. This program has funds available for specific practices to address post fire concerns.

Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) Program (USDA - NRCS): A federal emergency recovery program which helps local communities recover after a natural disaster strikes. The program offers technical and financial assistance to help local communities relieve imminent threats to life and property caused by floods, fires, windstorms and other natural disasters that impair a watershed.

Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) (USDA - Farm Service Agency): Provides compensation to eligible livestock producers who have suffered grazing losses due to drought or fire on land that is native or improved pastureland with permanent vegetative cover or that is planted specifically for grazing.

Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) (USDA - Farm Service Agency): This program provides benefits to livestock producers for livestock deaths in excess of normal mortality caused by adverse weather or by attacks by animals reintroduced into the wild by the federal government.

Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish (ELAP) (USDA - Farm Service Agency): This program provides emergency assistance to eligible producers of livestock, honeybees and farm-raised fish for losses due to disease (including cattle tick fever), adverse weather, or other conditions, such as blizzards and wildfires, not covered by LFP and LIP.

Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) (USDA - Farm Service Agency): This program helps the owners of non-industrial private forests restore forest health damaged by natural disasters. The EFRP does this by authorizing payments to owners of private forests to restore disaster damaged forests.

Barnyards & Backyards Articles

A homeowners guide: Understanding defensible space and wildfire preparedness

Evacuate animals or have plan to protect them when wildfire looms?

Creating defensible space around property is homeowner responsibility

Featured Landowner: Defensible space against fire instills peace of mind in mountain living

Firewise Landscaping

Grassland wildfire a greater threat than many realize

Reducing wildfire risk through fuel breaks: Landowner leading by example

Survive the unthinkable if wildfire threatens your home

Other Wildfire Preparation Resources

Wildfire: Preparing the Ranch and Farm (OSU)

Wyoming State Forestry Division Fuels Mitigation Page Lots of great information including links to contact info for local Fuels Mitigation Coordinators (folks who provide assistance and consultations for private landowners)

Defensible space: Landscaping steps to reduce the wildfire threat (2013 Living with Wildfire in Wyoming guide article)

Survive the unthinkable if wildfire threatens your home (2013 Living with Wildfire in Wyoming guide article)

Wildfire Safety (Red Cross)

Evacuation - Prepare your "Grab and Go"

Fema - How to prepare for a wildfire

House considerations in preparing for wildfire (University of CA)

Living with fire (University of Nevada Extension)

Wildfire information from eXtension

Don't start a fire with your vehicle (2013 Living with Wildfire in Wyoming guide article)

Firewise Communities (national firewise site, has interactive tools on how to prepare a home and virtual tours of a firewise property, etc.)

Your homeowner or business insurance coverage may need a checkup (2013 Living with Wildfire in Wyoming guide article)

Videos

How to create a firewise area around your home

Wildfire! Proactive approaches for your property (Barnyards & Backyards Live! Show)

Reducing wildfire risk to your home

Protecting Your Home From Wildfire (US Forest Service's Rocky Mountain Research Station)

Financial Resources for Community Wildfire Preparation

WY State Forestry Division Programs - Wyoming State Forestry has a variety of assistance programs to further strengthen the protection and safety of communities by making grants available through the State of Wyoming and the U.S. Forest Service.

Federal Resources - Learn more about pre-disaster Federal grant and cost-share programs across USDA, FEMA and DOI that can support community-led efforts to prepare for wildfire.

Barnyards & Backyards Articles

Survive the unthinkable if wildfire threatens your home

On-going Wildfire Map Systems

Incident Information System (InciWeb) - find info on on-going wildfires. However these types of websites can get overwhelmed or be updated slowly so rely on info from officials and evacuate as soon as requested to or earlier.

WSFD Interactive Fire Map (Wyoming State Forestry Division)

Active Fire Maps (U.S. Forest Service, NASA)

National Interagency Coordination Center Fire Maps

Wildfire Aware - Provides condition information for on-going wildfires and other parts of the state.

Pre-Evacuation and Evacuation

Fire Evacuation checklist (USFS)

Evacuation - Prepare your "Grab and Go"

Go! Evacuation Guide (Cal Fire - California)

Wildfire Preparedness Checklist (Red Cross)

WY Livestock Board Site - When they are issued you will find orders from WLB on this site which allow the movement of livestock without brand inspection from wildfire evacuation areas to neighboring counties in Wyoming.

Wyoming Travel Information Service - This WYDOT site provides information on road conditions and closures across the state. Wildfires move fast, have multiple evacuation routes in mind in case a road is closed due to fire, smoke and other factors. This is their 511 Travel Info app

Helping

Check in with your neighbors if you can reach them and if you have time to do so.

These events are often traumatic. The WY Ag Stress page (WDA) provides resources focused on supporting Wyoming producers with agriculture‑related stress and mental health help.

If someone is in immediate danger call 911. 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers 24/7 call, text and chat access to trained crisis counselors.

Governmental Coordination Resources

Wildfire Aware - Provides condition information for on-going wildfires and other parts of the state.

Rocky Mountain Area Coordination Center - Site provides National, Regional, and Statewide wildfire coordination. RMACC is the focal point for coordinating the mobilization of resources for wildland fire and other incidents throughout the area. The Center also provides Intelligence and Predictive Services related-products designed to be used by the internal wildland fire community for purposes of wildland fire and incident management decision-making.

WY Game & Fish Department Contacts - Scroll down and click on Regional Offices to get in touch with local personnel.

Casper Interagency Dispatch Center

Cody Interagency Dispatch Center

Great Plains Interagency Dispatch Center

Teton Interagency Dispatch Center

Helping

Wildfire Recovery Assistance in Northeastern Wyoming

Wyoming Stock Growers Wildfire Relief Fund: Wildfire Relief Fund to assist Wyoming livestock producers who have been impacted by major fires in 2024.

These events are often traumatic. The WY Ag Stress page (WDA) provides resources focused on supporting Wyoming producers with agriculture‑related stress and mental health help.

If someone is in immediate danger call 911. 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers 24/7 call, text and chat access to trained crisis counselors.

Getting started with recovery efforts - Communities

Recovery & Rebuilding - The healing process for a community requires extensive resources and support. This page provides links to resources that can help.

After the Fire USA - A 501(c)3 organization created by wildfire survivors and experts to support communities of all sizes as they prepare for wildfires and recover, rebuild, and reimagine a more resilient future after a wildfire.

Post Fire Recovery | National Interagency Fire Center - NIFC provides information about post-fire recovery programs for the Forest Service and Department of the Interior, including for Burned Area Emergency Response on federal lands, which can impact adjacent non-federal lands, and Burned Area Recovery programs.

USDA Rural Development Toolkit - Disaster Resiliency and Recovery Resources for Rural Communities - Learn more about USDA Rural Development’s disaster assistance programs for rural communities.

USDA Disaster Assistance Programs Brochure - Learn more about USDA Farm Production & Conservation’s disaster assistance programs for farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners. (Spanish Brochure)

Wyoming Game and Fish Department Wildfire Response Guide - This guide, developed in 2019 outlines best practices for post wildfire response. Find your local WG&FD personnel on this page.

Getting started with recovery efforts - Individuals

What to expect following a wildfire

Wildfire has rolled through, what do you do now? (A natural resource perspective)

Assessing the situation

Burn Severity - Knowing how severely a wildfire has burned your land can help you choose what to do (and what not to do). It is one of the keys to what techniques will or won't be successful. This chart shows signs that can help you determine burn severity.

Clean-up

Wildland Fire Chemical Clean-Up

Safe Cleanup of Fire Ash

Be diligent looking for hidden dangers

Drinking water and septic systems

Hazards, dead trees, are only a few issues to consider

Erosion control

Soil Erosion Control after Wildfire - There are several steps to take to reduce the amount of soil erosion. A landowner, using common household tools and materials, can accomplish most of these methods in the aftermath of a wildfire.

Contour Wattles - also known as straw wattles, fiber roles, bio-logs, or straw tubes are used to form a continuous barrier to intercept water running down a slope. When installed properly, they can increase water infiltration and reduce soil erosion.

Sandbag Barriers - inexpensive temporary walls, one to two feet high that are constructed by stacking sand-filled or earth-filled sandbags and placing them to divert mud and other debris flows away from buildings.

Log Erosion Barriers - Log Erosion Barriers (LEBs) are logs placed in a shallow trench on the contour to intercept water running down a slope and trap sediment. This treatment may also be known as contour log felling, log terraces or terracettes.

Reseeding & Tree Planting

Seeding - Re-establishment of permanent vegetation (such as grasses and forbs) provides long-term erosion control, may restore lost habitat values, and may help suppress noxious weed invasion after a wildfire. However it takes time and favorable climatic conditions to establish vegetation from seeding operations. There are other considerations as well. Read this document for more information.

Reseeding after fire: If, when, and how - Barnyards & Backyards article to help you think it through.

Hand Raking - is used on severely burned slopes with hydrophobic soil properties that will also be treated by mulching for erosion control, and may also include seeding to reestablish vegetation.

Financial Resources from Federal Agencies

Rural Development Disaster Assistance: USDA Rural Development Disaster Assistance is crucial for rural communities affected by crises and disasters. It offers essential support to homeowners, businesses, and communities to aid in their recovery and rebuilding process.

Natural Resources Conservation Service - Disaster Recovery Assistance: USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service provides disaster recovery assistance to farmers, ranchers, landowners and communities through a variety of USDA programs.

Farm Service Agency - Disaster Assistance: USDA Farm Service Agency offers a variety of programs to help farmers, ranchers, communities, and businesses that have been hard hit by natural disaster events.

Food & Nutrition Service – Disaster Assistance: Coordinates with state, territory, tribal, and voluntary organizations to provide nutrition assistance to families and individuals affected by a disaster or emergency.

Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool (USDA): Learn about USDA disaster assistance programs that might be right for you by completing five simple steps.

Financial Resources for Agricultural Producers

Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool (USDA): Learn about USDA disaster assistance programs that might be right for you by completing five simple steps.

Wyoming Stock Growers Wildfire Relief Fund: Wildfire Relief Fund to assist Wyoming livestock producers who have been impacted by major fires in 2024.

Weed Control

Weeds are really not waiting for a wildfire to pounce on your property – but sure can seem so

Wyoming Weed & Pest Council page - variety of resources (noxious weed ID, etc.)

Institute for Managing Annual Grasses Invading Natural Ecosystems (IMAGINE) This web site provides info on identification, management & control of invasive annual grasses (cheatgrass, medusahead, ventenata, etc)

Cheatgrass Management Handbook: Managing an invasive annual grass in the Rocky Mountain Region - This handbook provides information which can help land managers develop a strategic approach to managing this invasive annual grass. It focuses on managing cheatgrass in rangelands and natural areas.

Barnyards & Backyards Weed page - identification of weeds, control, etc.

Replacing fencing - Wildlife considerations

A Wyoming Landowner’s Handbook to Fences and Wildlife – Practical Tips for Fencing with Wildlife in Mind

Improving Fence passage for Migratory Big Game – Provides context, guidance for inventory, conservation planning, decision support, and implementation, along with references to dozens of relevant scientific papers in an easy-to-digest package.