Putnam Honored with Wildland Safety Award

           

This year's International Association of Wildland Fire Safety Award was presented to Dr. Ted Putnam who, among other accomplishments, was one of the investigators on the South Canyon Fire. The award is presented annually to someone in the wildland firefighting community who has made a significant contribution to firefighter safety, either directly on the fireline or indirectly through management, cultural changes or wildland fire research.

According the IAWF Treasurer Chuck Bushey, who presented the award, Putnam is a “hybrid” who has been able to view wildland fire safety from the aspect of several different disciplines, bringing a unique point of view not always readily seen or accepted by others.

Putnam began learning about fire protection with structural firefighting training in the military and later gained a background in both wildland fire operations and research while with the Forest Service. He began his wildland fire career with three years as a district crew firefighter on the Clearwater National Forest, Idaho, followed by 11 seasons as a smokejumper, three of those as a supervisor.

Putnam earned his doctorate in experimental psychology from the University of Montana, and combined this with his wildland fire experience by working for the Missoula Technology and Development Center. During the 1980s and 1990s he was actively involved in many wildland firefighter fatality investigations, including the 1990 Dude Fire in Arizona and the 1994 South Canyon Fire in Colorado. Putnam retired from the Forest Service in 1998.

The previous day at the Safety Summit, Putnam was also presented the Paul Gleason Lead by Example Award.