{"id":4932,"date":"2025-03-28T17:50:12","date_gmt":"2025-03-28T17:50:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/?p=4932"},"modified":"2025-03-28T07:19:24","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T07:19:24","slug":"oklahoma-state-forester-resigns-after-wildfire-response-criticized","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/28\/oklahoma-state-forester-resigns-after-wildfire-response-criticized\/","title":{"rendered":"Oklahoma State Forester Resigns After Wildfire Response Criticized"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"w-full text-token-text-primary\" dir=\"auto\" data-testid=\"conversation-turn-4\" data-scroll-anchor=\"true\">\n<div class=\"text-base my-auto mx-auto py-5 px-6\">\n<div class=\"mx-auto flex flex-1 text-base gap-4 md:gap-5 lg:gap-6 md:max-w-3xl group\/turn-messages focus-visible:outline-none\">\n<div class=\"group\/conversation-turn relative flex w-full min-w-0 flex-col agent-turn @xs\/thread:px-0 @sm\/thread:px-1.5 @md\/thread:px-4\">\n<div class=\"relative flex-col gap-1 md:gap-3\">\n<div class=\"flex max-w-full flex-col flex-grow\">\n<div class=\"min-h-8 text-message relative flex w-full flex-col items-end gap-2 whitespace-normal break-words text-start [.text-message+&amp;]:mt-5\" dir=\"auto\" data-message-author-role=\"assistant\" data-message-id=\"0f8ba883-f6a6-4a1f-b66e-59c20b9c00ad\" data-message-model-slug=\"gpt-4o-mini\">\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-col gap-1 empty:hidden first:pt-[3px]\">\n<div class=\"markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light\">\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"72\" data-end=\"408\">Enid, OK \u2013 Nearly two weeks after catastrophic wildfires ravaged Oklahoma, the state\u2019s forestry chief has stepped down from his position. Mark Goeller, who had served as the Oklahoma State Forester and Director of the Oklahoma Forestry Service since 2018, resigned following criticism of the state\u2019s response to the historic fires.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"410\" data-end=\"731\">Governor Kevin Stitt voiced his dissatisfaction with the way the Oklahoma Forestry Service handled the wildfires that broke out on March 14. The fires, fueled by record-breaking winds and low humidity, led to the destruction of more than 170,000 acres of land and hundreds of homes, including the governor\u2019s own property.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"733\" data-end=\"1093\">Goeller, who had more than four decades of experience in wildfire management, faced scrutiny from Stitt, who expressed that the state\u2019s response to the fires had been insufficient. &#8220;He\u2019s the head of the forestry department and we had a horrible, horrible wildfire in the state of Oklahoma,&#8221; Governor Stitt remarked. &#8220;I didn\u2019t think they did a really good job.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"1095\" data-end=\"1658\">The March wildfires, deemed a historic event, came with extreme weather conditions. Rick Smith, the Warning Coordination Meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Norman, explained that the weather conditions were &#8220;unprecedented,&#8221; with winds and dryness not seen in decades. Despite early coordination and preparation by the National Weather Service and Oklahoma Forestry Service, including pre-positioning equipment and dispatching super scooper planes, the sheer intensity of the fires left little room for intervention until weather conditions changed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"1660\" data-end=\"1934\">Smith noted that, in some cases, firefighters and officials had to wait for the weather to improve before making significant progress on controlling the flames. &#8220;While it was well forecast, there\u2019s only so much you can do to prepare for an event like this,&#8221; Smith explained.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"1936\" data-end=\"2242\">Despite the challenges, the lack of a statewide burn ban during the period of heightened fire risk raised further questions. When asked for clarification about the governor\u2019s concerns with the wildfire response and why a burn ban was not issued, the governor\u2019s office did not provide an immediate response.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"2244\" data-end=\"2683\">During part of the wildfire response, Senate Pro Tempore Lonnie Paxton acted as governor while Stitt was out of state. Paxton stated that he was in contact with Stitt, but that decisions regarding personnel changes, including Goeller\u2019s resignation, were ultimately up to the governor. &#8220;This is the governor\u2019s decision, whether he wants to keep people in certain positions or not,&#8221; Paxton said. &#8220;I have not talked to the governor about it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"2685\" data-end=\"3015\">The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry confirmed that Goeller\u2019s resignation will officially take effect on Monday. A spokesperson for the department expressed appreciation for Goeller\u2019s long tenure, which spanned over 40 years, noting his commitment to wildland fire response and the state\u2019s forestry industry.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"3017\" data-end=\"3264\">&#8220;Mark Goeller has been a dedicated public servant for over 40 years,&#8221; the spokesperson said. &#8220;His leadership in wildfire response in our state and to Oklahoma\u2019s forestry industry is greatly appreciated, and I wish him the very best in the future.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" data-start=\"3266\" data-end=\"3558\">The wildfires and their aftermath have left many questions about the state\u2019s preparedness and response, especially given the severity of the conditions. However, experts continue to stress that certain natural disasters are difficult to predict and control, no matter the resources available.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"flex justify-start\">\n<div class=\"-me-1 -ms-2.5 flex select-none items-center p-1 touch:-me-2 touch:-ms-3.5 -mt-1 duration-[1.5s] focus-within:transition-none hover:transition-none pointer-events-none [mask-image:linear-gradient(to_right,black_33%,transparent_66%)] [mask-position:100%_0%] [mask-size:300%_100%] motion-safe:transition-[mask-position] group-hover\/turn-messages:pointer-events-auto group-hover\/turn-messages:[mask-position:0_0] group-focus-within\/turn-messages:pointer-events-auto group-focus-within\/turn-messages:[mask-position:0_0] has-[[data-state=open]]:pointer-events-auto has-[[data-state=open]]:[mask-position:0_0]\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"absolute\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"pointer-events-none h-px w-px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-edge=\"true\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Enid, OK \u2013 Nearly two weeks after catastrophic wildfires ravaged Oklahoma, the state\u2019s forestry chief has stepped down from his position. Mark Goeller, who had served as the Oklahoma State Forester and Director of the Oklahoma Forestry Service since 2018, resigned following criticism of the state\u2019s response to the historic fires. Governor Kevin Stitt voiced [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":4937,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[136],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-4932","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-local-news"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Oklahoma State Forester Resigns After Wildfire Response Criticized - Enid Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/28\/oklahoma-state-forester-resigns-after-wildfire-response-criticized\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Oklahoma State Forester Resigns After Wildfire Response Criticized - Enid Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Enid, OK \u2013 Nearly two weeks after catastrophic wildfires ravaged Oklahoma, the state\u2019s forestry chief has stepped down from his position. Mark Goeller, who had served as the Oklahoma State Forester and Director of the Oklahoma Forestry Service since 2018, resigned following criticism of the state\u2019s response to the historic fires. Governor Kevin Stitt voiced [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/28\/oklahoma-state-forester-resigns-after-wildfire-response-criticized\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Enid Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-28T17:50:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/oK3.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"550\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"283\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Viktor Cross\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Viktor Cross\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/28\/oklahoma-state-forester-resigns-after-wildfire-response-criticized\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/28\/oklahoma-state-forester-resigns-after-wildfire-response-criticized\/\",\"name\":\"Oklahoma State Forester Resigns After Wildfire Response Criticized - 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