Eagle Lake Forestry was founded by wildland firefighter Erin "Finny" Finnegan of Duluth, MN. Since 2002, Finnegan has responded to hundreds of major wildfires across 15 states. Large campaign fires require massive efforts and inter-agency coordination of all local, state, and federal government- augmented with private contract resources. All must cooperate together to serve the public, commercial industries, utility providers, private land owners, and other stakeholders during trying times of need.
Finnegan's career in fire and conservation began as a Forestry & Range Technician with the Bureau of Land Management, staffing wildfire seasons at the Muskrat Springs Fire Station in NW Utah. From densely populated urban centers to extremely remote and rugged mountainsides- they were first on scene to dozens of new wildfire starts. Finnegan went on to serve locally for several years as a Fire Crew Leader for the MN DNR's Division of Forestry; acting as Initial Attack Incident Commander and providing leadership and training for prescribed fires and other forestry projects.
Finnegan's past experience includes private firefighting as a Wildfire Mitigation Specialist for leading insurance companies such as AIG, Chubb, USAA, Liberty Mutual, and Nationwide. Before wildfires occurred, Finnegan performed inspections, client consultations, and written Risk Analysis reports. When wildfires occurred they worked alongside emergency resources- engaging the fire and providing direct structure and asset protection to both policy holders and the general public.
Finnegan's fire responses include many recent California wildfires. Notably, in 2017, the Tubbs & Nunns Fires which destroyed 9,000 structures, killed 44 citizens, and injured another 192. One year later, the insurmountably devastating “Camp Fire” which killed 85 citizens, destroyed 11,000 residences, 500 commercial properties, and 4,300 other buildings. The cites of Paradise and Magalia were over 90 percent destroyed.
Over the past 20 years, Finnegan has accumulated vast experience and a wealth of knowledge across many diverse regions and landscapes of our beautiful nation. This has garnered him a special insight and perspective towards the intertwining of wildfire and land management, some can only achieve in a lifetime. Finnegan’s priceless front line observations of fire behavior are not just anecdotal- they are backed up by solid research from scientists and experts at the USFS Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory, National Fire Protection Association, Insurance Institute of Home & Business Safety, and many other universities and organizations.
Finnegan maintains NWCG qualification as: Engine Boss [Captain], Incident Commander, and Sawyer / Tree Faller. This includes FEMA's “All Risk” qualification for responding to any natural or man made disaster. Finnegan holds 23+ certifications related to forestry, wildland firefighting, prescribed fires, wildfire hazard mitigation, and emergency response. Finnegan continues a dedication to expanding his education in natural resources, forestry, wildfire, conservation, and more.
Finnegan's career in fire and conservation began as a Forestry & Range Technician with the Bureau of Land Management, staffing wildfire seasons at the Muskrat Springs Fire Station in NW Utah. From densely populated urban centers to extremely remote and rugged mountainsides- they were first on scene to dozens of new wildfire starts. Finnegan went on to serve locally for several years as a Fire Crew Leader for the MN DNR's Division of Forestry; acting as Initial Attack Incident Commander and providing leadership and training for prescribed fires and other forestry projects.
Finnegan's past experience includes private firefighting as a Wildfire Mitigation Specialist for leading insurance companies such as AIG, Chubb, USAA, Liberty Mutual, and Nationwide. Before wildfires occurred, Finnegan performed inspections, client consultations, and written Risk Analysis reports. When wildfires occurred they worked alongside emergency resources- engaging the fire and providing direct structure and asset protection to both policy holders and the general public.
Finnegan's fire responses include many recent California wildfires. Notably, in 2017, the Tubbs & Nunns Fires which destroyed 9,000 structures, killed 44 citizens, and injured another 192. One year later, the insurmountably devastating “Camp Fire” which killed 85 citizens, destroyed 11,000 residences, 500 commercial properties, and 4,300 other buildings. The cites of Paradise and Magalia were over 90 percent destroyed.
Over the past 20 years, Finnegan has accumulated vast experience and a wealth of knowledge across many diverse regions and landscapes of our beautiful nation. This has garnered him a special insight and perspective towards the intertwining of wildfire and land management, some can only achieve in a lifetime. Finnegan’s priceless front line observations of fire behavior are not just anecdotal- they are backed up by solid research from scientists and experts at the USFS Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory, National Fire Protection Association, Insurance Institute of Home & Business Safety, and many other universities and organizations.
Finnegan maintains NWCG qualification as: Engine Boss [Captain], Incident Commander, and Sawyer / Tree Faller. This includes FEMA's “All Risk” qualification for responding to any natural or man made disaster. Finnegan holds 23+ certifications related to forestry, wildland firefighting, prescribed fires, wildfire hazard mitigation, and emergency response. Finnegan continues a dedication to expanding his education in natural resources, forestry, wildfire, conservation, and more.