History of the Mid-Winter Muster
The Conference (formally Mid-Winter Muster and Black Hills Muster, now called Rushmore Fire Conference) has been offering training since 1985. It first began as an annual training in February for firefighters. It provided a way for career and volunteer firefighters from South Dakota and region to train and prepare for fire season. It had small beginnings with a handful of attendees and continued to grow over the years. The Conference continues to provide quality, essential training opportunities, tailored to an individual’s response needs, at a great value, right here in South Dakota.
In 2019 the Conference moved to an All-Hazard training approach and expanded its focus to provide training opportunities for not only firefighters, but for other disciplines in the response community. The new format will continue to include structure and wildland classes but will now offer training for Emergency Medical Services, Emergency Management. It makes sense to offer training that brings responders together in a non-stress environment, so they can interact with each other, before they meet on a big incident.
In 2019 the Conference moved to an All-Hazard training approach and expanded its focus to provide training opportunities for not only firefighters, but for other disciplines in the response community. The new format will continue to include structure and wildland classes but will now offer training for Emergency Medical Services, Emergency Management. It makes sense to offer training that brings responders together in a non-stress environment, so they can interact with each other, before they meet on a big incident.
Past Mid-Winter Muster Training Events
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |