260318-Z-FM865-1079
Army Staff Sgt. Brian Sydik, fire chief and Sgt. Dean Klotz, lead firefighter with the 755th Engineer Detachment, Nebraska National Guard, extinguish a remaining hot spot with a hose during wildfire response operations, March 18, 2026, near Brady, Nebraska. The soldiers, along with other members of the Joint Emergency Response Crew, conducted mop-up operations, extinguishing residual hot spots within the fire perimeter to reduce the risk of rekindle and support sustained containment. The National Guard is activated to augment local response efforts, providing additional manpower, equipment, and coordination to support large-scale incidents that exceed civilian firefighting capacity. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Airman Jeremiah Johnson)