CHEYENNE, WYOMING – Rob Akers, longtime Wyoming State Forestry Division employee, was inducted into the Wyoming Firefighters Hall of Fame at 2500 Academy Ct in Riverton on Saturday, August 22. Akers significantly impacted the Wyoming Fire Service and the people of Wyoming in his more than 41 year tenure with the division, especially in developing the state’s inmate wildland firefighting program, now known as the Wyoming Smokebusters.
Akers was first hired as a supervisor for the Young Adult Conservation Corps (YACC) in Newcastle through a federal program in 1979 and was later hired by the division in May 1980 to oversee inmates from the Wyoming State Penitentiary in Rawlins as they performed forest management work on state trust land south of Elk Mountain near Saratoga. He trained inmates in wildland firefighting to assist local firefighting resources in wildland fire suppression.
Akers became the program manager of the Forestry Conservation Program when the Wyoming Department of Corrections opened its minimum-security Wyoming Honor Conservation Camp north of Newcastle in March 1990. The program grew to include as many as nine correctional forestry crew supervisors and 55 inmate crew members who were assigned to community service projects, state trust land management and wildland fire. Akers retired from the division in December 2021. Akers was nominated for inclusion in the Wyoming Firefighters Hall of Fame by the Wyoming State Forestry Division and the Weston County Fire Protection District.
“The success of the Wyoming Forestry Conversation Program was a direct result of Rob’s ability to manage and motivate inmates and develop crew supervisors,” Wyoming State Forester Kelly Norris said. “We are grateful for Rob’s dedication and many years of commitment to the Wyoming Fire Service and wish to recognize him for his lasting contributions, impacts, and influence on those he has served across the State.”