I'll have to read it again, after coffee, but I seem to recall that both tried to go through "channels" and were ignored. That happens. I had that happen twice on fires and the only way we got change was to take a different approach.
In Oregon during a lightning bust, we were sent to a fire in the middle east of the state. It was a crew of folks that were mostly timber beasties. We'd worked together, knew each other and pretty much trusted each other because we'd been on some hairy slash burns together. Camp was in place and I think a Type 2 or 3 overhead team in place. Camp was in a meadow, with bug killed Lodgepole pine scattered about. We set up a tarp and then were helicoptered out and put in a 30 hour shift. There were so many fires and not enough crews at that time (sound familiar?) We came back in after having one minor insurrection--the bus was not going to stop to pick up another tired crew and they'd be waiting a while so we yelled and got them squished onto our bus.
We got in and the overhead team had changed to one up level. We were going to go on night shift so needed to sleep. The new team was concerned, and rightly so, about all the snags in camp so we woke up to the sound of saws and trees falling around us. Some trees were falling close to our sleeping area. We couldn't sleep. We came up with the idea that they could fall the trees during shift change and that way the night shift could get sleep. We talked to the folks in incident command. They ignored us and one told us we were the problem.
We were a tight crew, and we had backup back home. Our sawyer started cursing, grabbed his saw, which was a large one because we were from Western Warshington, and went over to the plans tent. He started the saw, revved it up and was bellowing and cussing asking them if they could sleep with that noise. Security was called and he was marched back and told to pack up. The security grimly announced, "He is being sent home." At that point, without any planning we all just said we would be going with him. We'd been out almost two weeks anyway. The security guy was speechless. He disappeared. He reappeared with one of the overhead honchos, who was red in the face and yelling at us about our crew being a problem. BUT, they decided to LET us stay on the fire. They would still cut down snags but at shift change (mentioned as if it was their original thought) and things would be safer. We stayed for the rest of the three weeks and were not reprimanded when we returned home, labeled That Problem Crew.
That might not have occurred if we'd not been a mixed crew, with over half of us having "permanent" status and a good team of people back home. Our Fire Management Officer protested sending us off Forest because "It's dry here and our trees are more valuable than dead eastside trees." The home budget was flush and we would be making extra money by patrolling on weekends and sleeping in our own beds so money wasn't an issue.
Another incident took place a few years earlier, and I took part in a sit down "strik protesting shower hours for women. The hours were convenient if you worked in camp, but not for those of us on a crew. We got the hours changed, but not by going through the channels, which was tried prior to the little protest.
You have to look out for yourself and sometimes take means that are outside of official channels if the bigwigs are being ignorant. It isn't snitching, or telling, it's a serious safety issue brought to light, and yes, I consider showers, and food to be safety matters.
Folks in charge often have tunnel vision and think only of their goals.
Oh, and the big one on the fire vs covid discussion is you can go home burned and your family and friends are not going to get burned if they are around you. It isn't contagious. It is just as serious, but you aren't going to get others sick. Pretty simple, that.
I'll think of you next time I'm having a bad day at the post office.
