NAPLES, FLORIDA — The U.S. Wildland Fire Service will implement a new policy this summer directing the agency to prioritize extinguishing wildfires over conducting prescribed burns. The agency, created by the Trump administration to consolidate all federal government wildfire response components, is led by Brian Fennessy.

The agency is bringing on additional fire crews earlier in the year and expanding its aerial firefighting resources ahead of the summer season. Fennessy said the agency is working to have aircraft in place before fire conditions intensify.

"We're dry and we're expecting the pace to pick up significantly here any time," Fennessy said. "We're trying to bring on additional aircraft and bring them on early."

The shift away from prescribed burns marks a change in federal wildfire strategy. Prescribed burns are controlled fires set intentionally to reduce vegetation that can fuel larger blazes. The new policy prioritizes suppression of active fires rather than the use of such preventive burns.

Wildfire scientist Park Williams said prescribed burns remain the most effective tool for preventing large, destructive fires. "If we don't want fires to be growing so large that they have catastrophic consequences for people and ecosystems, then the best tool we have at our disposal is large prescribed fires," Williams said.

On April 14, 2026, a Florida Forest Service firefighter's helicopter prepared to dump a bucket load of water on a wildfire in Naples, Florida. Drought conditions in the Naples area have made the region conducive to wildfires.