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| Messages 1 - 95 of total 95 in this topic |
nita
Social climber
chica de chico, I don't claim to be a daisy.
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Jun 30, 2013 - 11:53pm PT
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Oh Man.....this is Horrible...breaks my heart.
"Not including the 19 deaths reported in Arizona, there have been 43 firefighter fatalities reported so far in 2013, according to the U.S." ...so damn sad..
Condolences to all the families of the fallen...and their firefighting brothers & sisters.
Lacey, please check in....
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Leggs
Sport climber
Is this a trick question?
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Jun 30, 2013 - 11:57pm PT
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Devastating news... devastating Oh dear....
... speechless...
Condolences.
~love, leggs
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Risk
Mountain climber
Olympia, WA
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This is horrific news. I want to know how such a disaster could happen. I am saddened beyond words for the families of the fallen. May they never be forgotten for their sacrifice in the line of duty.
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Anastasia
climber
Home
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I can't even imagine. Speechless.
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splitter
Trad climber
SoCal Hodad, surfing the galactic plane
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so sad...
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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19...
I hope the whole world shows their families and every firefighter how much they are deeply respected.
19
just ... what do you say??
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Anastasia
climber
Home
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Yeah... 19. That number just hits so mercilessly hard... Seriously, start listing 19 of your closest friends that you know and step back, look at the list and let it sink in. A whole crew is just unimaginable.
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pud
climber
Sportbikeville & Yucca brevifolia
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f*#k !!!!!!
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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I've posted on the other thread about how serious the fire conditions
are this year. AZ especially the Prescott area, had a rather dry, warm Spring.
Combine this with near all time record heat right now as our monsoon approaches.
Wild land firefighters, especially Hotshot crews are right on the
front lines.
It's very brushy country where this happened. I understand that
winds were very erratic (think thunderstorm downdrafts) today.
RIP my fallen brothers (and sisters?). I'm not looking forward to the dreams
tonight....
Albert
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Lacey
Social climber
Nevada
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What to say..... This is very sad news today.My thoughts and prayers out to all the family and friends of the Fallen , This makes me so sad..... I imagine I'll be getting called soon..... Thanks Nita, Big hugs to you..xoxoo
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Fletcher
Trad climber
The great state of advaita
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Just devastating. Like others, just don't know what to say. Rest well, brave souls.
Eric
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Ward Trotter
Trad climber
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My heart goes out to the family and friends.
What a devastating loss.
Hard to get the mind , and the heart , around such a tragedy.
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Park Rat
Social climber
CA, UT,CT,FL
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RIP
Condolences to all their families & friends.
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steveA
Trad climber
bedford,massachusetts
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All of the above thoughts +1
So tragic!
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Terrible.
(but glad to see Albert posting)
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, all.... very sad to hear this... :(
prayers and condolences to the families and loved ones...
very very sad... :(
thank you to all firefighters, everywhere...
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shipoopoi
Big Wall climber
oakland
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what a total tragedy. rip peace to all the fallen. ss
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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My sincerest condolences to the families and friends
of the fallen firefighters. . .
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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So sad. Condolences to family and friends.
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mooser
Trad climber
seattle
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No words sufficient...
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guyman
Social climber
Moorpark, CA.
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Very sad.
Condolences
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Seamstress
Trad climber
Yacolt, WA
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This is a tragedy.
I have the great privilege of working with many young people training for fire, wildland fire, ems, paramedic careers. They give me great hope for the future and great confidence in the inherent good of people. Every fire season, they get so excited about being called to action and using their training to protect us.
The wildfire in Arizona that claimed the lives of 19 elite firefighters has been the deadliest day for firefighters since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, where 343 rescuers lost their lives.
The only wildfires with a higher firefighter death count than Arizona's were when a fire in Los Angeles’ Griffith Park killed 29 people in 1933 and when 86 died in The Great Fire of 1910 that burned through Washington, Idaho and Montana.
Here is a look back at some of the deadliest days for firefighters in recent history:
Sept. 11, 2001 - 341 firefighters and two paramedics died during the rescue efforts at the World Trade Center's twin towers.
Aug. 20, 1910 -- The Great Fire of 1910 burned about 3 million acres in Washington, Idaho and Montana, taking with it the lives of 86 firefighters.
Oct. 3, 1933 -- The Griffith Park wildfire in Los Angeles killed 29 firefighters.
April 16-17, 1947 -- 27 firefighters killed after fires and ammonium nitrate explosions aboard two ships docked in Texas City, Texas.
Dec. 22, 1910 -- 21 firefighters killed at a stockyard and cold storage warehouse in Chicago.
June 30, 2013 -- 19 members of an elite crew are killed in a fire northwest of Phoenix that lit up the night sky in the forest above the town of Yarnell. The fast-moving blaze fueled by hot, dry conditions is the deadliest wildfire involving firefighters in the U.S. for at least 30 years.
July 29, 1956 --19 firefighters killed at the Shamrock Oil and Gas Corp. refinery in Sun Ray, Texas.
July 9, 1953 -- 15 firefighters killed in a wildfire in the Mendocino National Forest in California.
July 9, 1953 -- The Rattlesnake fire in Southern California took the lives of 15 firefighters battling a blaze in Mendocino National Forest.
July 6, 1994 -- A blaze near Glenwood Springs, Colo., killed 14 firefighters who were overtaken by a sudden explosion of flames. The lightning-sparked Storm King Mountain blaze roared through shrubs as the firefighters scrambled uphill. Thirty-five firefighters on the mountain that day survived.
March 10, 1946 -- 13 firefighters were killed when a roof collapsed at the Strand Theatre in Brockton, Mass.
Aug. 5, 1949 --The Mann Gulch fire near Helena, Mont., killed 12 smokejumpers and a forest ranger after they were overrun by flames.
Aug. 5, 2008 -- 9 people killed when a helicopter crashed shortly after taking off with a load offirefighters heading back to camp in Northern California. Seven of the dead were firefighters with Grayback Forestry Inc. The crew was fighting a forest fire on the Shasta-Trinity National Forest outside Redding, Calif.
June 17, 1972 -- 9 firefighters killed in a collapse at the Hotel Vendome, Boston.
Aug. 24, 2003 -- 8 contract firefighters who had spent two weeks fighting an Idaho wildfire were killed on their way home when their van collided with a tractor-trailer and exploded into flames outside Vale, Ore. The firefighters, all men, worked for First Strike Environmental, a contract firefighting company and all were from Oregon.
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weezy
climber
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condolences to family and friends of these very tough and very brave souls.
i just did my shelter test as a volunteer for my tiny local fire department. i cannot imagine a more horrible fate as dying in one of those damn burrito wrappers. it takes a certain kind of human to be a wildlands firefighter and kudos to all you out there who take on the duty.
RIP to the fallen members of Granite Mountain Hotshots crew.
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Genevieve Armstrong
Social climber
Four Corners, U.S.A.
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I would just like to thank everyone for their kind words. My cousin was one of the Granite Mountain hot shots that we lost last night.
Knowing there are so many people out there who care, it's comforting.
Thank you all!
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Horrible. RIP!
I hope something is learned from the accident.
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weezy
climber
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when you deploy your shelter, you pretty much know you're f*#ked. they straight up tell you that in the "user manual". it's like falling off a route while soloing and trying to grab the holds on the way down as a last ditch effort to avoid death. that manual painted no rosy picture regarding fire shelters and their use in the field.
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Reeotch
Trad climber
4 Corners Area
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It must have been horrific to see it coming like that. All 19 fire shelters deployed. Good God. I hope they didn't suffer too long. I can't think of a worse way to lose your life.
Those hotshots all deserve medals of honor.
RIP Brothers and Sisters
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Lacey
Social climber
Nevada
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Please donate today more then ever to the WFF Foundation to help these families at this very sad and tragic time......R.I.P.Granite Mountain Hot Shots...
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Condolences. Tragic.
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guido
Trad climber
Santa Cruz/New Zealand/South Pacific
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Oh man, that is so so sad-RIP
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Anastasia
climber
Home
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So mind boggling and shocking. I couldn't fathom it at first.
My deepest condolences. No one effected can walk away from such a tragedy without it changing "everything."
Hugs,
AFS
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HighDesertDJ
Trad climber
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Been a tough day. News trickling in about who was there (and just as importantly, who wasn't) via phone and facebook. So far those that I was closest with were spared but are now being called in to fight the fire that just took all these young ones. Lot's of pictures of the families of the lost being posted which is really hard. So many young children left behind.
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10b4me
climber
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what a horrible way to die. my condolences to all family members. Genevieve, so sorry for your loss.
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Floorabove
climber
The Gunks y'all
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God Bless and rest in peace Brothers.
I'll take a crawl down the long hot hallway anytime, over the flaming hillside. It just seems more manageable.
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S.Leeper
Social climber
somewhere that doesnt have anything over 90'
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Horrible news. These were BRAVE people.
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Leggs
Sport climber
Is this a trick question?
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One of my HS girlfriends works for Channel 12 up in Phx and she was kind enough to share this:
"There are days, some days, when my job is simply bigger than me. Paying tribute to these men: ... "
~goodness me... my heart swims with sadness at this tremendous loss. Peace to all.
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goatboy smellz
climber
Nederland-GulfBreeze
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Andrew Ashcraft - age 29
Robert Caldwell - age 23
Travis Carter - age 31
Dustin Deford - age 24
Christopher MacKenzie - age 30
Eric Marsh - age 43
Grant McKee - age 21
Sean Misner - age 26
Scott Norris - age 28
Wade Parker - age 22
John Percin - age 24
Anthony Rose - age 23
Jesse Steed - age 36
Joe Thurston - age 32
Travis Turbyfill - age 27
William Warneke - age 25
Clayton Whitted - age 28
Kevin Woyjeck - age 21
Garret Zuppiger - age 27
Gone but not forgotten,
rest easy & move forward.
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JOEY.F
Gym climber
It's not rocket surgery
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Hard to fathom, so sad...
Condolences to their family and friends.
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Vegasclimber
Trad climber
Las Vegas, NV.
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Like many of us here on the Taco that have fought wildland fires in the past, I am pretty torn up about this and dealing with a lot of flashbacks over the last couple days.
As much as I hate reading the same copy and pasted reports from the news, I keep reading them anyways, trying to find that "ahha" moment of why this happened to a highly skilled crew.
The fact is I know better. Fire is a living creature and it does what the hell it wants sometimes.
My heart is heavy for the families and the friends of these fallen heroes. And another memorial sticker will be going up next to the West, Texas one on my Jeep.
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Dr. Christ
Mountain climber
State of Mine
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Spent the night digging line a few times, which were much better than the 100+F days. Never knew anyone who deployed their shelter. Anyone know anyone who has actually lived through a mandatory deployment? I like the new green color... less like a jiffy pop bag.
The sole surviving member lived because he had been moving the unit's truck at the time.
Can you imagine...
RIP
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little Z
Trad climber
un cafetal en Naranjo
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very sad, condolences to all loved ones, and many, many thanks to those who are still out there putting themselves in harms way to protect us.
Back in the early 80s I worked for the BLM in the Yarnell area. The habitat is dense, gnarly chaparral turning into pinyon, juniper and live oak up higher. A fire in that stuff would burn so hot, and for so long, especially close to the ground, that there would be no hope for surviving in an emergency fire shelter. God, what a way to go.
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Dr. Christ
Mountain climber
State of Mine
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ah... it has been over 15 years since I carried one... we practiced with the real things. thx
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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I know two men who deployed (along with a 3rd) in the Huachuca Mountains outside Kingman, AZ (maybe 100 miles from this incident) in the early 90s. They were racing from the fire, found some boulders and so the story goes one of them was banging his head against a boulder hoping to pass out. It's a horrid tale to hear. Anyway, both these men continue to serve our country in the fire service.
I found out about this recent incident before it hit the media. I was walking to dinner in camp when a friend texted of 19 confirmed casualties. I was sick to my stomach over dinner, teary eyed, unwilling to tell anyone around me the news for fear of starting what I hoped were false rumors. It wasn't all that much later that it hit the media. Anyway, that night going to sleep in my tent here at Pagosa airport the coyotes started singing. I swear one of those coyotes sounded like a mother (or wife) screaming. It was a sobering, sad way to fall asleep and a sound I will never forget.
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Michelle
Social climber
1187 Hunterwasser
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I'm still in shock. I donate to WFF when I can. Too many firefighting friends. I was acquainted with a family who received assistance from them as well.
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HighDesertDJ
Trad climber
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http://www.godhatesfags.com/fliers/20130702_AZ-Wildfire-19-Firefighters.pdf
PRAISE GOD FOR THE ARIZONA WILDFIRE THAT KILLED 19 GRANITE MOUNTAIN HOTSHOTS!
WESTBORO BAPTIST CHURCH TO PICKET FIREFIGHTERS’ FUNERALS
GOD ALMIGHTY SENT THE ARIZONA WILDFIRE! Revere & honour HIM! Not those firefighters. Adore & give obeisance to God! Not those vile human creatures! These 19 are currently in hell’s fire, pleading for God to send Westboro Baptist Church to picket their funerals & warn their families, friends &
community of the eternal consequences of sin.
Dear Westboro Baptist Church;
I realize that it is not enough for you to believe that you have the attention of your god. Your actions over the last decade have proven that it is not his attention you seek, but rather everyone else's. You are the Snooki of churches. And now that the nation's eye is on my beloved Prescott, you are drawn in like a spoiled child that has learned that any attention is good attention. I have watched with disgust as you have exploited the unfortunate circumstances of the dead, the wounded and their families across the years but it did not occur to me for a moment that you might try to make yourself part of this tragedy.
You claim to have warned of these events and that they are because our country has become a more accepting place for gay people, especially gay marriage. Strangely, Prescott itself should be rather fertile ground for your larger message against gay marriage, a sentiment that I myself reject but that many Prescottonians share. If you show up to protest, they will not hear it. All they will hear is your utter contempt for the dead and spite for those that grieve for them, the widows and children they left behind and the fire that still burns near where their bodies lay.
It does not take a degree in psychology to see you want to be the focus of this story and there is little I can do to change that, but let us try to find a constructive outlet that will garner you the attention you seek. My request to you is this: put down your picket signs and pick up some shovels. There is an out of control fire right near Prescott. You may lack any formal training in firefighting or fire safety, but fear not. They are the fires of an angry, vengeful god and you are righteous and true. They will not harm you.
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Longstick
Social climber
Seattle, WA
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Topo Map as of July 1;
http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/photos/AZAZS/2013-06-30-0907-Yarnell-Hill-Fire/related_files/2013_07_01-14.35.11.757-CDT.pdf
If you study this ...as I have ... it is easy to get an idea of what MIGHT have happened. Lightening...on the high points NE4 Sec 4 or NW4 Sec 3w/N to NW winds... Look at that retardant line... from his FB pg. Hmmm... so that might put them just at end of the road... I could go on.. and wrote my thoughts. Now I wait for truth telling. I hope we get the unvarnished events.
This hurts... really hurts. Prayers for the surviving member and loved ones.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Condolences to their families.
I do not have the experience that some posters to this thread have.
I was only on two fires as a volunteer with the Cedar Ridge Fire Brigade (Tuolumne County, we had one fire engine and were all volunteers) and did not do too much, just there as an EMT1, though I did handle a hose once on a ridge fire.
My two best friends I grew up with used to work wildfires, Brian for the California Department of Forestry for two seasons, and Andy the USFS for a season. They told me some stories.
My hearts go out to those families and friends affected. What a horrible way to die.
And HighDesertDJ, that particular Baptist church is just plain sickening and loony.
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HighDesertDJ
Trad climber
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I caught only a brief part of the vigil on the live stream last night but the singing was beautiful. It sounds like local biker gangs did an effective job at keep the WBC at bay. The photos of the sunset over Granite Mountain was truly breathtaking. All my best to those who made last night special for the families and friends left behind.
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Gal
Trad climber
a semi lucid consciousness
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Heart is heavy, absolutely awful, so difficult for the families & friends... So hard to fathom this happened. Words aren't good enough to express the condolences and sadness. I just think about these 19 who lost their lives. I think of their loved ones. I just sit in silence with a heavy heart, unending empathy, and hope for solace for everyone who is close to this loss. So unfair when this happens to those who were unselfishly trying to good for others and the environment.
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splitter
Trad climber
SoCal Hodad, surfing the galactic plane
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i watched one heartbreaking moment on the television a day ago. a young lady grieving for her husband. said that there will never be another one like him, he was so kind, tender and thoughtful. very sad. difficult for me to bare at the moment...cut deep. she will remain in my thoughts and prayers for a very long time.
edit: "pray for them all" yes, thats what i was really saying. watching that one interview was about as much as i could handle. it was representative, and spoke, for all of the 19's loved ones.
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Reeotch
Trad climber
4 Corners Area
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Yeah, my heart goes out to Brenden.
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Longstick
Social climber
Seattle, WA
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Ron, that time lapsed video you posted is the best example of what a catastrophic wind shift would do to push the smoke and embers down ...and create a carpet of fire ignitions. There would be spontaneous ignitions and torching....for up to a mile ahead ....seen it...
I am getting better... it just hurts. This has weather similarities to Storm King. Back then, though at a nearby fire with we had about three days of crew shut-down in the late afternoon... the same t-cell actions around 4-6 pm... as the condensing columns driven upward by the heat...finally cooled ...and crashed down sending piles of wind in a 360. I was a perched on rocks looking down and waiting it out on one of those days. I will never forget the feeling when in 10 minutes the wind shifted 180 ... with 40 mph gusts. Guys looked at each other with bug-eyes...yelling at each other cause the wind made so much noise... we knew this would have caught us if we were anywhere under that smoke. We understood... exclaiming....this is a lesson ...never forget...cause this is what happened yesterday at Storm King...and not boss was going to let it happen again.
Oh, but if you based the expected winds on what had gone on in the AM...and early afternoon...then you would be teased ... as the pattern was steady direction in wind...usual heat convection breezes upslope.... then the thunderheads loomed... and boom...it got squirrely.
And that call-in radio ... good on you... yeah...no retardant...would work... and I bristle seeing photos of retardant lines that are along the edge of a wildfire after ....dropped there after the conditions has quieted.. And the caption to the photo reads, "Fire retardant stops fire along southern edge of Yarnell.
... stopped the fire?!? Are you kidding me!!! It stopped a creeper fire line...not one which was moving and leap-frogging 1/2 mile at a gallop.
Please don't mislead folks into thinking as long as we got air attack over us ...we good....no...no...
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Radish
Trad climber
SeKi, California
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Just really sad and tragic news! So feeling for the families that have to go through this tragic event! We are on duty in fire right now and it was such a sad eye opener to all of us here in SEKI! We're praying for the folks in Prescott, our Brothers in Fire!
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ontheedgeandscaredtodeath
Social climber
SLO, Ca
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wow. I just came out of a backpacking trip with my kids and learned about this. I fought fires for 5 seasons in AZ, three on a hotshot crew in central AZ so this hits home a bit. So sorry for all involved.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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bump for Heroes
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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The memorial service is today in Prescott.
RIP Granite Mountain Hotshots
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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There were some very brave firefighters who entered the burning Asiana plane
on Saturday. They definitely saved some lives.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
LA Times:
Asiana Airlines crash first responders still 'running on adrenaline'
By Kate Mather
July 9, 2013, 9:01 a.m.
San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White hailed her department's response to the Asiana Flight 214 crash, saying she "couldn't be prouder" of those who "really put their life on the line" by climbing into the fiery wreckage and pulling out passengers.
Hayes-White spoke to The Times on Monday, after some of the first responders described their actions in an emotional news conference.
"Most of us that were out on the airfield Saturday have not had a chance to catch our breath," Hayes-White said. "We're still sort of running on adrenaline, I'd say."
As jet fuel streamed off the wing in the immediate aftermath of the crash-landing, firefighters ran up the aircraft’s inflated escape chutes to get to those trapped inside. A police officer without protective gear joined them, entering through the breached tail section and clearing a passage by tossing out luggage and wrecked overhead bins.
Lt. Christine Emmons said she saw fire Lt. Dave Monteverdi run up the emergency chute of the airplane: “I said if he can do it, I can do it.”
Lanky, shy and admittedly nervous, Monteverdi told reporters that when firefighters realized “our only way up was up the chute … that’s what we did.”
Hayes-White, as well as police officials, said their departments have encouraged those at the crash site to seek any and all assistance they may need to cope with the ordeal. "We have resources that will help us out and that's an important thing," San Francisco Police Lt. Gaetano Caltagirone told reporters.
"The first thing I did was brought my crew together and I told them, 'Yes, we wear the bulletproof vests, carry the guns, we try to save people's lives, we put our lives at risk. But we're also human beings, and we need to talk,'" Caltagirone said.
"In the days and weeks that follow, this will become less of a story," Hayes-White said. "But nevertheless, it still remains in our hearts and in our minds."
The fire chief was at her son's baseball game Saturday when she got the call of a hard landing at the airport. She anticipated broken bones, whiplash — not an incident of this scale.
Usually if the Fire Department is called to the airport, it's "some mechanical issue, some landing gear issue," Hayes-White said, and the response team is pre-staged prior to the plane's arrival. "This time, we had no warning," she said, noting first responders were on scene about 3 minutes after the call came out.
Hayes-White rushed to the airport, lights flashing and sirens blaring. When she arrived about 20 minutes later, she said, she was "very impressed" by the response.
Doctors at San Francisco General Hospital have described the triaging that first responders did as life-saving. Hayes-White, who toured the hospital over the weekend, called that "very, very gratifying" to hear.
"We don't want to discount the fact that two lives were lost and there are still some critically ill patients that are fighting for their lives," she said. "But I do believe the work, the training and the team work -- all the hard work done ahead of time -- really paid off in this instance."
ALSO:
Asiana crash: Aviation experts question decision-making in cockpit
Doctor says he told AEG exec that Michael Jackson was a drug addict
Drug tests clean for Asiana responders who may have run over victim
Twitter: @katemather
kate.mather@latimes.com
SFO Firefighters' Bravery
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Jul 12, 2013 - 07:03pm PT
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An article from the LA Times a week ago. I have no idea of the accuracy of the reporting.
July 7, 2013, 6:00 a.m.
PRESCOTT, Ariz. — Hours before the Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshots
climbed into the parched, craggy hills where they would die, one of them
woke his father with a phone call.
"We have a fire in Yarnell," said Kevin Woyjeck. "It's big and getting
bigger."
The lightning-sparked wildfire outside the tiny former gold-mining town had
spread to 200 acres, sweeping over deep canyons and big boulders, taking
fuel from chaparral rich with oils that burn hot and fast.
Still, the 21-year-old Woyjeck, the son of a firefighter, did not sound
worried.
Granite Mountain was an experienced crew, led by a supervisor old enough to
be Woyjeck's father — he called the crew his kids — and who was known to
turn down missions he didn't think were safe. The hotshots were supremely
fit and spoke with a swagger about their ability to absorb punishment. On
workouts they'd sometimes run a mile, then turn around and do 300 sit-ups
and 100 pull-ups.
And this wasn't a huge fire. It was what they call a Type III, not even
serious enough to call in one of the meteorologists who deploy on the big
blazes that can turn deadly with a turn of the weather.
Later that day, though, the winds would shift suddenly. The sky would
darken, the cool-headed supervisor would radio for help and, despite a
desperate attempt to use a helicopter to douse the suddenly advancing
flames , the Yarnell Hill fire would become one of the deadliest blazes in
the history of fighting wildfires.
None of this seemed possible when Woyjeck spoke to his father at 6:45 a.m.
June 30. The Prescott-based crew had fought fires across the West, and now
it would tackle one in its own backyard.
Woyjeck promised his father he would call that night.
*::*
As the fire advanced that morning, west of Arizona Highway 89 between
Yarnell and Peeples Valley, other members of the hotshots crew, 20 men
strong, were texting home about the task ahead.
"I think I'm going to be out here a while on this one," Andrew Ashcraft,
29, a father of four, wrote to his wife. He added later: "It's getting
really wild out here — Peeples Valley is trying to burn down."
The crew established a safety zone at a large ranch near Yarnell,
authorities said, with a bulldozed path leading to it. If the fire took a
nasty turn, they expected to retreat there.
At 8 a.m., Yarnell's retired fire chief, Peter Andersen, watched from his
home in the town's Glen Ilah subdivision as one of the hotshots' squarish
transport trucks, called buggies, rumbled toward the blaze.
Andersen climbed a hill and saw air tankers drop loads of slurry onto the
fire. He figured the crews had it under control.
Then, at 1 p.m., with temperatures in triple digits, came a knock on his
door. Authorities were urging residents to evacuate.
"From what?" he said.
He refused.
Just 24 minutes later, hotshot crewman Wade Parker, 22, sent his mother a
text.
"We're on a 500-acre fire in Yarnell," Parker wrote. "Temps supposed to get
up to 116. I gotta pretty good headache. Pray for me."
Parker was a Prescott native and fireman's son who had ridden in the back
seat of his father's fire truck as a child. He was engaged to be married
Oct. 19.
Like others on the hotshot crew, so named because such teams descend on the
hottest part of a fast-moving fire, Parker wore heavy protective gear and
lugged 50 pounds of equipment. Temperatures peaked that day at 103 degrees.
At 2:05 p.m., the National Weather Service in Flagstaff called the Yarnell
Hill fire dispatch center to warn of an approaching thunderstorm. Prescott
got some rain, but not the fire zone.
"We could really use a little rain down here," Ashcraft texted his family
at 3:19.
Eleven minutes later, the weather service sent out another thunderstorm
warning.
At 4:04 p.m., Parker sent his mother a photograph from his perch on a rocky
ridgeline. Below, a massive wall of gray smoke was racing toward the town.
"This thing is running straight for yarnel. jus starting to evac. you can
see fire on the left town on right. DO NOT POST THIS ON FACEBOOK OR ANY
OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA DEAL!!!!" He didn't want to start a panic.
Around this time, Ashcraft's wife, Juliann, sent him another text. She was
worried because she hadn't heard from him in a while: "Are you sleeping
down there?"
No response.
*::*
Sometime after 4 p.m., as the thunderstorm raged overhead, the wind did two
dangerous things. It reversed course and blew north-northeast. It also
doubled in speed to 26 miles per hour. Rain evaporated before it hit the
earth.
Scrambling across granite hills, among the pinyon pine and thick
underbrush, the 19 hotshots were carving a fire break to stop the flames'
surge toward the town.
A 20th crewman, Brendan McDonough, 21, was positioned nearby as a lookout.
By 4:30 p.m., the evacuation order became mandatory in Yarnell. Andersen,
the former fire chief, grabbed his cat carriers and managed to herd six of
his eight cats inside. Stepping outside his house, he felt the hot wind
blowing in his face. "It felt like a convection oven," he said.
To the west he saw a swirling column of black, ember-spitting smoke. It
made him think of an approaching tornado.
The intense wind had "split the fire like a horseshoe," driving it toward
Glen Ilah, Andersen said. In his years fighting fires, he could not
remember a fire like this one, which he called "erratic ... crazy ... a
freak of nature."
He fled south in his car down Arizona 89, through miles of smoky haze.
It is unclear how many of the townspeople had joined him in fleeing by
then. Firefighters assumed there were holdouts, and it was later learned
that some homeowners had indeed stayed.
"There's always an assumption that people's lives are in jeopardy," said
Jeff Knotek, a retired Prescott fire captain who has participated in
briefings on the fire.
The crew had been fighting the fire from the back on a ridge, but the wind
shift apparently put the team directly in its path, officials said. Also, a
wind inversion occurred, meaning the wind was being pulled down toward the
ground, smothering the firefighters in smoke and creating what Knotek
called a "zero-visibility situation."
Wind gusted at more than 40 miles per hour, pushing the flames ferociously.
The fire "came around and hooked them," Knotek said.
The lookout, McDonough, following procedure, escaped to safety after
warning the others. "The lookout said, 'It's hot and heavy and I'm out of
here,'" said Dick Mangan, a retired fire investigator. "The message to the
crew was that they better do something too."
Wade Parker's father would later learn that helicopter crews had
desperately tried to spot his son's crew through the thick smoke. Sikorsky
choppers dropped water onto the area, but the pilots could only guess where
the trapped men might be.
Firefighter Todd Pederson heard the radio traffic. "I could hear the guys
trying to get a hold of [reconnaissance] aircraft to direct help from
helicopters," he said. "The guys wanted them to know where they were
because they were in trouble."
Officials have said the men lost radio contact at 4:30 p.m. But Colleen
Turbyfill, mother of Granite Hill crew member Travis Turbyfill, said she
learned from fire officials that the crew radioed in at 4:47 p.m. to say it
was trapped.
Prescott Fire Department spokesman Wade Ward said the crew's supervisor,
Eric Marsh, was "calm, cool and collected" when he relayed the
deteriorating situation.
At 4:48 p.m., Colleen Turbyfill said, the crew called back to say the team
was dug in. The firefighters were deploying their sleeping bag-like fire
shelters, which they are trained to do in less than 20 seconds. It was a
desperate measure.
Ward said Marsh, 43, remained composed as he radioed with this news. "They
were in a tight spot and everyone knew this was going to be a bitch," Ward
said. "But his voice was very calm: 'We're deploying.'"
The firefighters fell silent, lost somewhere beneath a roiling blanket of
dark smoke.
By 5:30, the radio traffic was speaking of downed firefighters.
They had been lost for an hour or two when the smoke parted enough for a
helicopter crew to spot the bodies. There were 19 of them.
*::*
The men were found huddled near one another.
The hotshots had grouped together in their shelters, a strategy that might
have allowed them to communicate "and give each other confidence that they
can survive this," said Mangan, the retired fire investigator. "The intent
is to reflect the radiant heat, and grouping together also helps that."
Ward observed that "They all stayed together. Nobody ran."
Some of them were in their shelters, some out. This suggested that they
didn't have time to take cover or that they abandoned the shelters because
it was too hot.
An observer from the helicopter and a team of local firefighters found
their way to the bodies and kept watch. The bodies were lined up in body
bags on the scorched ground and draped with American flags.
Officials debated whether it was possible to remove the bodies by
helicopter. It was deemed too risky. Patches of ground still sizzled. In a
matter of hours, the fire had spread tenfold.
Through the night, bulldozer crews plowed through hot topsoil, rocks and
thick brush to create a path to the bodies. They reached the bodies around
5 a.m. Monday.
Officials worked to identify the bodies, sometimes relying on dental
records and identifying marks such as scars and tattoos.
On Wednesday morning, a procession of the fire crew's buggies, nicknamed
Alpha and Beta, were driven down from the hill.
"They smell like fires and smelly guys," Ward said. "That smell is really
affectionate for us in a strange way."
He added, "It was very sad to see them come back without our friends."
*::*
Investigators from around the country have arrived to determine what went
wrong.
They will examine dispatch logs, weather records, radio conversations,
accounts of witnesses. They will have many questions: Who was in charge?
How good was the communication? Was there an order to pull back? When did
it come?
They will study the carbon monoxide levels in the fallen firefighters'
blood, which may help determine how long the men survived on the hill.
The Prescott-based hotshots had flown across the West battling wildfires,
but this one happened close to home. Five were born in Prescott; two more
grew up there. Lloyd Burton, a University of Colorado professor who studies
fire, wondered whether that influenced their approach.
"They probably had friends in Yarnell," he said. "They had close ties to
the land and the people who lived there. Maybe this led them to get a
little closer to the fire and they may have fought it more aggressively."
The 19 lost firefighters left behind 11 children, 10 widows and three
fiancees. Three were expecting children.
A few, including Kevin Woyjeck, left behind firefighter fathers whose paths
they had followed.
"Who was I to tell him he couldn't do it, when I did?" said Joe Woyjeck, a
Los Angeles County fire captain who raised his son in Seal Beach, where the
family still lives.
The father had helped the son select the Granite Mountain team. Recently he
had been urging Kevin to hop a flight to Los Angeles, to complete his
application for a local fire crew. But it was a busy fire season, and his
son would reply that he couldn't leave his men.
"You got to understand, Dad, there's nobody else."
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pk_davidson
Trad climber
Albuquerque, NM
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Jul 17, 2013 - 07:59pm PT
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For those of you interested, from a hot shot friend:
"Here's where you should give a few bucks: The Wildland Firefighter Foundation. http://www.wffoundation.org/
This is a private, non-profit group that was founded in the wake of South Canyon. Initially, they sold T-Shirts to help out the families of firefighters who are injured or killed on the line. They're magical. I've seen their magic first hand, and I think the world of this group."
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Sep 29, 2013 - 11:02pm PT
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rSin (Arson??):
This thread is to help us remember the brave men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice to help protect our country and its' citizens. Can we talk politics and make personal attacks elsewhere?
Thanks,
Albert Newman
Flagstaff
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Sep 29, 2013 - 11:44pm PT
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rSin, or "our sin" or Arson wrote:
"staking out every mention of the losses as a memorial is bullsh#t
its little more than worship of the regiment which got em killed
enjoy"
rSin, the title of this thread is "R.I.P. to our fire-fighting brothers". If you have problems with the federal fire policy or how we manage public lands there are many threads on ST which discuss these issues. Is it too much to ask that you keep your ricin on other threads? These are men and women who have died serving this country.
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Sep 30, 2013 - 09:03pm PT
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Ron, I noticed that about the gps and wonder what the investigation team was thinking. I do know that a lot of air attack platforms and double pilot aircraft uses IPads to track weather, storm cells, etc. I'm not sure how practical the technology we have right now is for a handheld device like that to be carried by a hotshot crew on the move.
As difficult as it is to read, I've been studying this latest report.
Some sadly curious observations include, the smoke column ("pyrocumulus") reached an astonishing 40,000 ft that day. Investigators believe the crew had about two minutes from the time the fire first crested the nearby ridge and became visible to the time of their deployment, as the fire was moving 10-12 miles per hour with 60 to 80 foot flame lengths. Temperatures of the flame front were an estimated 2000 degrees F.
Two minutes, standing in brittle, ten foot tall brush, watching a monster wall of flame headed your way.
With absolutely no hope of escape.
RIP Granite Mountain IHC
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Nov 12, 2013 - 09:56pm PT
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A video account of the Yarnell Hill Fire. A 20 minute summary of the accident investigation report.
Worth viewing if you have been following this tragedy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSxSqjRmxIE
RIP Granite Mountain IHC
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Dec 11, 2013 - 07:34pm PT
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http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-ff-yarnell-fire-20131205,0,5748857,full.story#axzz2nDNMDKDa
Arizona agency fined $559,000 in Yarnell Hill firefighter deaths
An Arizona safety panel's report finds numerous management lapses in the Yarnell Hill blaze that killed 19 members of the Granite Mountain hotshot crew.
TUCSON — The 19 firefighters who perished when 40-foot flames overtook them in a rocky canyon near Prescott in June were the victims of poor planning and bad communication, forced into a losing battle to protect structures and pasturelands that were "indefensible," a state safety commission concluded Wednesday.
The Arizona State Forestry Division, responsible for managing the Yarnell Hill fire, now faces a $559,000 fine, one of the largest such fines ever levied in the state.
A report prepared by independent consultants to the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health found that members of the Granite Mountain hotshot team were called on to fight the fast-moving blaze outside the town of Yarnell with inadequate briefing, no good maps and radios that left them without good communication with incident commanders.
"We found no evidence that a risk assessment for the strategies and tactics were examined," said the report, prepared for the state by Wildland Fire Associates. Fire overseers "reported flame lengths of 40 feet with rates of speed up to 16 miles per hour occurred, yet no one seemed to recognize these signs as trigger points that should have led to a change in tactics and relocation of [the crew]," it found.
Wednesday afternoon, the Arizona Industrial Commission voted unanimously to accept the findings of the report, which also called for payments of $25,000 to dependents of each of the 19 firefighters.
Arizona State Forestry officials said they had not yet reviewed the safety agency's report. Fire officials have 15 days to appeal the findings, said Abbie Fink, Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health spokeswoman.
The voluminous report found that a combination of safety violations — including lack of critical personnel, incomplete analysis and hours-long delays — took place during the fire, which burned more than 8,000 acres of wild land and destroyed over 100 structures.
Like a previous report prepared by state fire investigators in September, the new examination found that the Granite Mountain crew was caught off guard when a sudden change in wind sent towering flames suddenly racing toward homes in Yarnell — and toward the crew, which had left its previous zone of relative safety.
At a meeting Wednesday afternoon, Marshall Krotenberg, the safety compliance supervisor for the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health, outlined myriad violations to commissioners.
Forestry officials failed, for example, to include safety officers in crucial coordination meetings because of unexplained delays, he said.
"Apparently the ball got dropped," Krotenberg said. He said safety officers during those gatherings would have made a difference.
On several points, he criticized what he called fire management staff's ill-advised decision to prioritize protection of structures over firefighter safety.
"After looking at all the facts, I believe it's just too risky to stay that long in an attempt to protect structures that have been deemed indefensible," Krotenberg said.
While fire officials had been given daily afternoon thunderstorm reports, there was never a plan to account for such a weather event, he said.
The safety agency's report is a departure from the September report that found no evidence of recklessness or negligence in the Yarnell Hill wildfire.
The earlier report, produced by a team of local, state and federal investigators convened from around the country, "found no indication of negligence, reckless actions, or violations of policy or protocol," but did note some problems with radio communication.
That report was commissioned by the state forestry division, which is now subject to the workplace safety penalties.
Marcia McKee, the mother of Grant McKee — one of the 19 firefighters who died — called the previous state report a "whitewash" in a claim she filed against the state, the city of Prescott and Yavapai County officials.
"Its primary goal is to avoid blaming anyone," said the claim filed on Nov. 14. "As a result, a trusting, uninformed person reading the Yarnell Hill Fire Report uncritically would think that the death of 19 men was just bad luck and no one's fault — which is false."
McKee's claim seeks $36 million.
Wednesday's report notes that there were management planning issues from the beginning.
An initial attack on the blaze on the morning of June 29 was delayed because a helicopter large enough to move the crew safely was not available, the report found.
"People with local area expertise did not tell [them] about local trails and roads that could be used to hike in to the fire. By mid-afternoon, on June 29, the fire jumped over the two-track trail," according to the report. "The initial attack forces had clearly failed to stop the fire and put it out in a manner consistent with firefighter and public safety and values to be protected."
Also at issue was the handing off of the initial fire incident command team to the one that took over on June 30.
The second crew took over command even though certain key members of the team hadn't arrived yet, the report stated.
The ultimate result was confusion and miscommunication, according to the findings.
Both teams "failed to convey a coherent strategic plan for suppressing the fire that was uniformly understood by ground and air resources from initial attack through the entrapment and burn over," according to the report.
The Granite Mountain crew was found to be appropriately rested and trained, but the area around Yarnell, thick with chaparral, was "primed to burn" after not experiencing a wildfire for more than 45 years, the report found.
A 20th crew member, appointed as a lookout away from the rest of the crew, was separated from his comrades and survived.
According to the report, the 19 firefighters all died huddling next to one another, sheltering in a 24-by-30-foot area as temperatures reached 2,000 degrees.
cindy.caramo@latimes.com
http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-ff-yarnell-fire-20131205,0,6692636.story#ixzz2nDSUGWbl
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Dec 16, 2013 - 10:34pm PT
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Indeed, that is a gripping, horrific little segment.
Best wishes to all the wives,children, fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters of these men who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
R.I.P. Granite Mountain IHC
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 16, 2013 - 11:16pm PT
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rSin, the title of this thread is "R.I.P. to our fire-fighting brothers". If you have problems with the federal fire policy or how we manage public lands there are many threads on ST which discuss these issues. Is it too much to ask that you keep your ricin on other threads? These are men and women who have died serving this country.
Back off. rSin, whoever s/he is, is every bit as entitled to post here as you are.
I started this thread because I spent time on the fire line and just wanted to wish the departed spirits of nineteen unfortunate brothers well. Since then, Ron Anderson has completely taken it over, as he does on half the threads on ST, posting almost a full third of the content. But so what? Should I delete it because Ron is babbling on "my" thread?
If rSin wants to put up some thoughts here, he is just as welcome to do so as you are, or Ron is.
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Dec 17, 2013 - 08:38am PT
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Fair enough Ghost. If you, are Arson or any other anonymous troll want to dishonor the memories of those who died serving our country you entirely have that right.
Albert Newman
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Ghost with your permission I am going to keep the memories of these firefighters alive. If you like I would be happy to start another thread with nearly the same title. As a professional wildland firefighter who knows many of the people who on scene at this incident, this particular disaster hits especially close to home.
I hope that the anonymous hacks and arsons who mock this tragedy can keep their rude, disrespectful comments to themselves.
Ron, the AZ Republic has been running a series of articles about the families of those who died.
Here is a link to one story:
"She was the wife of a Granite Mountain Hotshot and, one summer night, saw her world torn apart. But in the months that followed, she would be lifted up — by the lessons of her husband, the arms of family and a promise from a friend."
Read the rest of it here:
http://www.azcentral.com/news/arizona/articles/20131231yarnell-fire-warneke-baby-part1.html
R.I.P. Granite Mountain IHC, lost but not forgotten
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 1, 2014 - 08:59pm PT
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Ghost with your permission I am going to keep the memories of these firefighters alive.
You don't need my permission.
I started this thread because nineteen of my brothers died in a terrible tragedy and I wanted to honor their memory.
If you want to keep that sentiment going, I'm all for it. If you want to do it in this thread, that's great. If you want to do it on your own thread, that's fine too.
Nobody owns a thread. My hope would be that the posts on this one would be wishes for fair winds, high tide, and green grass for the spirits of the guys who died, but if someone wants to raise and/or discuss an issue pertinent to the tragedy, that's fine too.
Ron Anderson has raised a few such issues -- more power too him for doing so. But when rSin, whoever that might be, raised an issue that was relevant to the deaths of those guys, you jumped all over him. Why didn't you jump all over Ron Anderson when he said something other than "R.I.P."?
Anyone who spent time in the smoke has had nightmares about this. 'Nuff said.
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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It's a new year, I am looking forward, while remembering those who have moved on. I hope this thread grows angel wings.
It is tough Ron, still brings a tear or two to read those stories of the babies that will never know their father and the mothers that will never see their sons again.
Here is a short made for TV documentary that seems well done for what it is. It may have been a little more sobering had they shown the actual terrain those men were hiking in before the burn. It is a wretched place to hike, much less fight fire. Anyone who has been to Granite Mountain has a good idea of the type of terrain and vegetation.
http://www.wunderground.com/news/america-burning-yarnell-hill-tragedy-and-nations-wildfire-crisis-20131230
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ontheedgeandscaredtodeath
Social climber
SLO, Ca
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Thanks for posting the article-- it's well written / produced.
Some thoughts:
My experience was that when a fire went sideways and was being transitioned from initial attack to being managed by a team it is always a chaotic, directionless mess. Crews need to be especially heads up while this is going on. I bet if every fire like this were investigated glaring management mistakes during transition would be revealed.
I think the initial thought that the crew was trying to make it to the ranch to protect it is wrong, it seems clear that everyone thought the ranch was an excellent safety zone.
Ultimately a hotshot crew is responsible for itself. Crews travel nationally- you can fight fires in swampy places like Florida, get on a plane and go to a brush fire in L.A. county and then maybe to a wilderness timber fire in Idaho. You have no idea about the competence of people managing those fires and maybe have never previously fought a fire in a particular fuel type. My superintendent would never commit us to anything he didn't verify for himself.
That obviously was not a problem here--they were on their home turf--but the mentality would be the same. Self sufficiency. The lookout situation on the fire was completely inadequate. Also, having a second or third year guy as a lookout is not o.k.
Doing slurry drops on their backfire seemed like a huge error.
Seeing pictures of Norris in his distinctive orange / yellow / white Payson hotshot hardhat (my alma mater) was brutal.
It seems they would have been well aware the fire was blowing up--there is no fire fighting to be done when that happens anymore than trying to stop a hurricane or earthquake. So they must have been thinking safety zone. I just can't see going down into the brush like that. I wasn't there and I'm sure they had their reasons.
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ontheedgeandscaredtodeath
Social climber
SLO, Ca
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Those storms and the related downdrafts / wind shifts are well known and anticipated in Az. In certain cycles they happen every day. I just think everything happened much faster than everyone thought and they got caught out in the brush where they should not have been. Tragic, but I think the blame on the overhead is misplaced, or at least not spread as widely as it should be. I guess this isn't really the thread for this so I'll shutup now...
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ontheedgeandscaredtodeath
Social climber
SLO, Ca
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Yup, hindsight is 20/20. I think Norman MacLean said it well when he wrote about the Mann Gulch Fire:
“They were still so young they hadn't learned to count the odds and to sense they might owe the universe a tragedy.”
I think about this accident often, having been raised as a hotshot in the same area and having so much fun and adventure doing that job. Anyway, RIP Granite Mountain Hotshots.
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Ron that sounds rather warm in the burn over. Fortunately Ive never had anything near that intense happen. These days it would warrant a major investigation and report.
I see what you are saying about the SPOT locators and can imagine it may be something the powers in Washington are discussing. They probably could have gotten the heavy air tanker drop in time if they had only known the location of the crew.
It will be interesting what changes occur in the fire service as a result of this horrific accident.
OTE: I didn't realize you worked for Payson IHC. I regularly run into the legendary Fred Scheffler on incidents, he goes out as an Safety Officer these days.
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GLee
Social climber
MSO
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As another who has worked in my youth doing this, I'm adding my thoughts and condolences to the families of those who have passed...
I thought that I would added this email to the thread (it just came to me today from a fellow volunteer in TRAMPS):
"America Burning: The Yarnell Hill Tragedy"
Steve Carlson (jumpbum@centurytel.net)
Add to contacts
1:22 AM
[Keep this message at the top of your inbox]
To: Steve Carlson
Picture of Steve Carlson
Trail Crew folks,
Here is some information gathered by Fred Cooper and Bob McKean about this fire.
Fred’s email is Frederi920@aol.com and Bob’s is mckeanbob@gmail.com If you want to share comments with them.
Steve
There have been two fire investigation reports of the Yarnell Fire. The first by the AZ Department of Forestry released a couple months after the fire and the second by Wildland Fire Associates released in late November. Barry Hicks (MSO '64) was a member of the second investigation team. My conclusion is that the AZ Department of Forestry basically found in their report that they had followed their protocols and the firefighter deaths were the result of a catastrophic fire situation beyond their control.
The Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health hired Wildland Fire Associates whose findings resulted in the AZ Div. of OSH levying fines against the AZ Dept. of Forestry. The Wildland Fire Associates report concluded amongst other findings that the "Arizona Department of Forestry failed to implement their own extended attack guidelines and procedures including an extended attack safety checklist and wildland fire decision support system with a complexity analysis."
Following is a link to the Wildland Fire Associates Investigation Report. It is 73 pages in length. I found it to be a very comprehensive report. As with all wildland firefighter deaths that I have read about, a breakdown in communication is always a factor in entrapment and death. One of the primary missions of fire investigators is to identify all the contributing factors in the hope that others can learn so other lives are not put in jeopardy. Will we ever achieve this objective?
https://1bbaaf77-a-62cb3a1a-s-sites.googlegroups.com/site/yarnellhillinformation/WildlandFireAssociatesReport.pdf?attachauth=ANoY7cpBjb6BCnC06jBGZRXIUZixEN_GllAvrB_4cEb6iqMYFDrpn4nCXo5a5D01RV8J4_sXJwJG5FgjPE2qOWqvXCVXvlJ0exZnOBRnNbiaf4o86NUfYIXyDvxbCKu6rRi9d1r7GW6QXBiiyl923LUrT1eVucS6zv-zOWbZDxXVH1Np4JxAnPmIMyU_62Z0KrImmdX1l26DZqt_LAA6bvYvHwnLSOjQvdxTMmin1EXw0ZtYBnFWE89KwAvlqcfjq7SyimOK1RNK&attredirects=0
(you may have to higlight & COPY this URL, then PASTE into a URL bar)
Here is a recently published video from the Weather Channel that provides a compelling report on the Yarnell Hill Fire deaths. Note that Ted Putnam (MSO '66) is in the video. It is possible that he was an investigator on the fire. I know he was an investigator on the Storm King Mountain fire.
http://www.weather.com/news/america-burning-yarnel-hill-tragedy-20131230
Greg Lee (GLee)
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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R.I.P. Airtanker Pilot Geoffrey "Craig" Hunt
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Apr 12, 2015 - 04:44pm PT
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A couple weeks ago, two men killed and another seriously injured after a helicopter crash on a controlled burn in Mississippi.
RIP and thank you for your your service.
http://www.sunherald.com/2015/03/31/6152411/ntsb-faa-at-scene-of-fatal-copter.html
A pilot from Blanchard, Okla., and a U.S. Forest Service worker from Wiggins were unable to get out of a crashed helicopter after it caught fire in the De Soto National Forest, but another forest worker managed to get out and survive, authorities said Tuesday.
The pilot killed in Monday's crash in the Success community in north Harrison County has been identified as Brandon Ricks, 40, of Blanchard, Okla. The U.S. Forest Service worker killed was Steven W. Cobb, 55, of Wiggins.
Harrison County coroner Gary Hargrove said both were found inside the Bell 206 L1 helicopter after the crash was reported about a mile from Airey Town Road at 2:57 p.m.
Autopsies show Ricks died of smoke inhalation and Cobb of blunt force trauma, Hargrove said.
Authorities said the helicopter is owned by T&M Aviation of Oklahoma.
The details were released Tuesday in a press conference at the Mississippi Highway Patrol complex in Biloxi.
The survivor's name has not been released.
Hargrove said the man underwent surgery Mon
day night at the University of South Alabama Medical Center in Mobile. His condition was upgraded from critical to serious but authorities have not been able to talk with him yet.
The helicopter crashed along a 30-foot path and hit a number of trees, said Stephen Stein, air safety investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board. The crash site is east of Mississippi 67 and U.S. 49.
The wreckage will likely be removed today outside the view of the media and the public.
Officials have said the pilot and forest workers had been monitoring a controlled burn of about 800 acres along the Harrison and Stone county lines.
Stein said the helicopter had taken off from the Wiggins Airport. It is unclear if the pilot was communicating with anyone before the crash.
A NTSB team arrived at the crash site Tuesday along with team members from the Federal Aviation Administration, inspectors, aircraft engineers and manufacturers' representatives, he said.
The team will gather and document the scene with photographs before turning over the wreckage to a secure facility for further investigation, Stein said.
Part of the initial investigation includes questioning witnesses. Stein said the Forest Service and Harrison County Fire Service have been helpful with that, as well as other aspects.
Anyone with information about the crash is asked to contact the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov or (202) 314-6000.
"Once the wreckage has been recovered, we will begin to investigate the man, the machine and the environment," Stein said.
Investigators will compile information about the pilot, his training and flight proficiency, and they'll examine the aircraft, its component history and maintenance records. Stein said the probe also will consider lighting and weather conditions, environmental factors and archived radar data.
A preliminary report with initial findings will be available on the NTSB website within five to 10 business days.
Stein said it could take up to 12 months to complete the investigation. About 60 days later, the NTSB board will release a brief report and probable-cause report.
"During the course of the investigation, if we find any systematic deficiencies at all concerning the man, the machine or the environment, the board will move to issue a safety recommendation … designed to prevent future similar accidents," Stein said. "Safety is our primary mission."
He said the helicopter was built in 1980.
"On behalf of the NTSB, I'd like to offer deepest sympathies and most sincere condolences to the families and friends of those involved in the accident," Stein said.
Mario Rossilli, Forest Service public affairs spokesman, said members of the state agency feel the loss.
"It has hit a lot of us really right here," he said, placing his hand over his heart. "We're coping."
Greta Boley, Forest Service national director for Mississippi, said the agency appreciates a show of concern and prayers from across the nation and in South Mississippi
"We are hurting right now," Boley said.
J
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the albatross
Gym climber
Flagstaff
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Aug 19, 2015 - 08:30pm PT
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Rest in Peace.
http://news.yahoo.com/sheriff-3-firefighters-killed-washington-state-wildfire-005836275.html
TWISP, Wash. (AP) — Three firefighters were killed and three to four others were injured, at least one critically, on Wednesday as raging wildfires advanced on towns in north-central Washington, authorities said.
Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers said the deaths, in a wildfire near Twisp, had been confirmed, but he said he was not immediately releasing specific details about the circumstances or the victims, pending notification of their families.
"It was a hellstorm up here," he told KXLY-TV of Spokane. "The fire was racing and the winds were blowing in every direction and then it would shift. ... It was tough on 'em up here."
One firefighter had been taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle in critical condition, a nursing supervisor there said.
"My heart breaks over the loss of life," Gov. Jay Inslee said in a written statement. "I know all Washington joins me and Trudi in sending our prayers to the families of these brave firefighters. They gave their lives to protect others. It was their calling, but the loss for their families is immense."
The news came after officials urged people in the popular outdoor-recreation centers of Twisp and Wintrop, in the scenic Methow River valley about 115 miles northeast of Seattle, to evacuate as a fire near Twisp grew to about 2 square miles.
The Okanogan County Emergency Management department issued the order for the towns, which combined have a population of about 1,300.
A larger group of fires burning to the east covered about 50 square miles and prompted the evacuation of Conconully, home to about 200 people 20 miles northwest of Omak — with further urgent evacuation orders issued Wednesday night for an area south of Conconully to the Omak town line.
To the south, more than 1,100 firefighters were combatting a fire that topped 108 square miles and was still threatening the resort town of Chelan.
Angela Seydel, a spokeswoman for Okanogan Emergency Management, said Wednesday evening that 4,000 homes in the region had been evacuated.
"It is really bad out there. The fires have just exploded," she said. "We're just directing everybody to head south."
A stream of cars poured south out of Twisp as dark smoke clouds loomed; the highway to the north was closed. Some people put sprinklers on their roofs in an effort to protect their homes, and others joined gas lines several cars deep.
The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for the eastern portion of the state from 11 a.m. Wednesday to 5 p.m. Friday. Officials said temperatures will climb above 90 degrees and relative humidity will drop as low as 14 percent.
Drought and heat have combined to make this fire season of the most active in the United States in recent years. Nearly 29,000 firefighters are battling some 100 large blazes across the West, including in Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Washington and California.
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