Applying innovative science and technology to on-the-ground natural resource management

Navigation Areas > Who We Are > Staff > Fire Qualifications

Name: Craig Comstock
Title: GIS Analyst
Phone: 406-243-6777
Email:

Go Back

Craig Comstock is GIS Analyst at the National Center for Landscape Fire Analysis, College of Forestry and Conservation, University of Montana

Growing up in Bakersfield left me with an appetite for dynamic and diverse landscapes.  Mind you, I am not saying I lived in a purely static environment however, the elements lacking were to be part of the list that would fuel my passion for exploration.  After high school I became interested in the fire service. I worked on a 'shot' crew out of Bodfish CA. Station 72 for two summers('89,'90), the crew is currently known as Rio Bravo Hotshots. During the spring semesters of those years I attended Columbia College attending the fire program, where I focused on municipal fire service coursework.  I left the fire program to attend a four-year college. Fortunately for me I chose to pursue a degree in Geography at the University of Montana.

I graduated from the U of M in 1999 and immediately began working for the Forest Service as a cartographic technician, working primarily on land status. After four years with the Feds, I got a job at the U of M working in the fire world.  Currently, I am a GIS Analyst for The National Center for Landscape Fire Analysis(NCFLA). My current projects at NCLFA are the Wildland Fire BaseMap and the Fire Atlas.  During the fire season in the northern hemisphere I am fortunate to be a member of our Fire Intel Module(FIM) and have the opportunity to make my office the field. 

I am a person with keen interest in the varied landscapes across the Northern Rockies, the Great Basin and the Pacific Northwest.  Both my job and my personal endeavors allow me to be connected to these landscapes in ways that are meaningful to me.  In my spare time I enjoy exploring Western Montana by foot, wheel and ski. At NCLFA I have increased my understanding of fire ecology which has enhanced the way I view the spatio-temporal patterns across the landscape encountered during my outdoor endeavors.