Wildfire Today

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Wildfire Today

Tag: fatality

Missing engine part from Iron 44 helicopter crash

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , ,

One “possibly crucial engine part” from the fatal helicopter crash on the Iron 44 fire last year in northern California that killed nine firefighters and pilots was missing when the crash debris was shipped from Columbia helicopters to the National Transportation Safety Board.

From Aero-News.net:

The wreckage from the aircraft involved in the so-called “Iron 44” incident had been sent to Columbia Helicopters, where NTSB and FAA officials observed while technicians tore down the aircraft’s engines. The NTSB subsequently asked that the engines be shipped to Washington, DC, but a footnote in the 500 page preliminary report indicates  “upon opening the shipping containers, an inventory of the hardware revealed that the following components from the FCU (Fuel Control Unit) Number 1 were not present: Metal position adjusting cover, snap retainer ring, spring retainer cap, spring and bellows.”

The FCU’s control the amount of fuel delivered to the engines.

A review of the video recording of Columbia employees packing the shipping containers shows the parts were not among the items shipped.

KDRV-TV reports that the general council for Columbia Helicopters said, while employees have searched “high and low” for the missing parts, they have been unable to locate them. The company says the FCU’s may not be a focus of the investigation, and therefore may not be important.
 
Greg Anderson, the attorney for William Coultas, the surviving pilot from the crash, as well as the family of one of those killed in the incident, told the station the omission of the parts from the shipment is “highly suspicious.”

 

 

Thanks Kelly

Iron 44 Crash Report

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , , ,

The Carson helicopter that crashed last year on the Iron 44 fire and killed nine firefighters was much heavier than U.S. Forest Service recommendations, according to National Transportation Safety Board reports. The NTSB said the weight was near maximum for vertical takeoff, requiring near-maximum engine power. So instead of climbing up on takeoff, the helicopter went forward, clipping trees before it crashed. Seven contract firefighters, the pilot, and a USFS inspector pilot were killed; four others survived.

On August 5, 2008, the Sikorsky S-61N crashed on takeoff from a remote site in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest near Weaverville, California. The NTSB is suggesting that Carson Helicopters understated the weight of its aircraft and kept spotty maintenance records; the company’s contract with the USFS was terminated last fall.

The NTSB estimated that the actual empty weight of the helicopter was 13,845 pounds, while Carson Helicopters stated in their contract proposal that the weight was 12,013 pounds. For the purpose of load calculations on the day of the crash, the pilot assumed the weight to be 12,408 pounds, which was 1,437 pounds less than the actual weight estimated by the NTSB.

The Oregonian reports that Carson, on the other hand, accuses investigators of neglecting critical facts in a rush to judgment. They say the NTSB used bad data in calculating the weather’s effect on helicopter performance, and that investigators extrapolated the temperature at 73ºF. at the site. Voice recordings from the co-pilot indicate the temperature was actually 68ºF.

Carson says the NTSB is trying to support a “preconceived conclusion” by using the higher temp in its calculations, and they also argue that the NTSB should have examined whether malfunctioning fuel control units caused the crash.

Killed on the incident were pilot Roark Schwanenberg, 54; pilot Jim Ramage, 63; Shawn Blazer, 30; Scott Charlson, 25; Matthew Hammer, 23; Edrik Gomez, 19; Bryan Rich, 29; David Steele, 19; and Steven “Caleb” Renno, 21.

Thanks, Dick

Firefighters’ memorial service streaming live on Internet

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,

The memorial service at Dodger Stadium for the two firefighters killed on the Station Fire, Tedmund Hall and Arnaldo Quinones, is being streamed live on the Internet by the ABC station in Los Angeles. It is also available on Directv on channel 393. The service started at 10 a.m. Pacific Time.

According to the program, speakers will include Vice President Joe Biden, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, County Supervisor Don Knabe, County Fire Chief P. Michael Freeman and leaders of two firefighter associations.

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UPDATE during the service:

The comments from all of the speakers were moving. A couple of quotes from the Vice President, a past chair of the Congressional Fire Service Caucus, were especially memorable:

It’s an awful fraternity to belong to … the fraternity of the fallen.

All men are created equal. A few become firefighters.

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UPDATE after the service:

The LA Times covered the service HERE. Below is an excerpt from their article:

“There is very little we can do today that is going to provide genuine solace,” Biden told the firefighters’ families. But noting the firefighting brotherhood that was in evidence at the ceremony, he promised them that eventually they would “draw strength from this, if not today, tomorrow, next week, next year.”

“We all say things like, ‘We never forget.’ These guys mean it,” he said, gesturing to the firefighters in the crowd. “They will never forget – any time, any problem, under any circumstances, you will have a family bigger than your own to go to.”

The stadium was silent as Biden descended into the visitors’ dugout after his speech. Fire officials could be seen patting him on the back in the dugout; Biden watched the rest of the ceremony there.

Dodger Stadium had taken on a somber tone. Hundreds of red, yellow and green firetrucks cruised under two large American flags hanging from firefighters’ ladders and ringed the stadium. Flags lining the upper deck of the stadium were lowered to half-staff. A speaker’s platform had been set up over home plate, flanked by huge shocks of flowers and stands that were holding the firefighters’ helmets and boots.

“We are blind to the fact that we are all from different agencies,” said U.S. Forest Service Firefighter Anthony Powers, who worked frequently with Hall. “We’re all here for the same reason – to support the families and because we all lost somebody…. It’s like losing a family member.”

After the service, firefighters embraced and many lingered in their seats and watched a slide show of Hall and Quinones on the large screens that typically show highlights, scores and players’ statistics.

“Family is what this is,” Asst. Chief Gary Burden said on the way out. “These guys made the ultimate sacrifice and it touches every one of us to the core.”

A video report from MSNBC:

(THE VIDEO IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE)

Preliminary information about the fallen LACFD firefighters

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,

At a press conference today Mike Bryant, Deputy Fire Chief the Los Angeles County Fire Department, provided some preliminary information about the deaths of the two firefighters we reported on August 30.

Captain Tedmund D. Hall, 47, and Firefighter Specialist Arnaldo Quinones, 35, (left to right above) were working with 65 other firefighters attempting to protect Camp 16 from the Station fire. As the fire got near the camp, Quinones and Hall got into a pickup truck in order to reposition it. Somehow during that repositioning the truck left the road and tumbled down the slope, ending up 800 feet below the road.

Photo: Jason Redmond

The fire overran Camp 16 (above) totally destroying the facilities, according to the Chief Bryant. “Many” firefighters suffered minor burns and smoke inhalation, but all were treated and released.

There will be a formal inquiry, including a serious accident review.

Services are being planned for Quinones and Hall, but have not yet been finalized.

Again, our condolences go out to the families and co-workers.

Two LA County firefighters killed in vehicle accident on Station fire

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,

In a news conference late today officials announced that two firefighters with the Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACFD) died today in a vehicle accident while working on the Station fire near Mt. Gleason in southern California. The accident happened earlier this afternoon, and the families of the fallen firefighters have been notified, they said at the news conference.

Details about the accident were not provided, but television footage showed a truck that had rolled over.

At 6:52 p.m. PT the LACFD Tweeted:

lacfd *Station IC* Report of fire department vehicle over the side 400+ feet with unknown outcome. Copters unable to get in to search. Keep them in our prayers.

Our sincere condolences to the families and co-workers of the firefighters.

We will update this as more information becomes available.

Memorial for Robert Woodhead, helicopter pilot

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,

From the Lillooet News

Robert Woodhead, the pilot who died on Friday, August 14 when his helicopter crashed as he was dipping water out of the Fraser River near Lytton, B.C., was remembered during a memorial service on Sunday.

Lillooet – Hundreds paid their respects Sunday at the 23 Camels Bridge to Robert Woodhead, the helicopter pilot who lost his life fighting the Intlpam wildfire.

Residents and emergency personnel joined Woodhead’s brother and four children at the afternoon tribute, which brought traffic to a standstill. Local firefighter Alain Auger and Eunice Stotesbury organized the event.

Woodhead was filling his helicopter’s water bucket from the Fraser River on Aug. 14 at about 4:20 p.m. when the craft crashed into the river. His helicopter, a Bell 212, crashed 28 kilometres north of Lytton and was headed to the Intlpam wildfire nearby.

Fire hoses spray two streams of water before helicopters fly over. Photo: Eunice Stotesbury

Another helicopter in the area tried to rescue him after the pilot saw Woodhead surface from the wreck. The other pilot lowered his bucket so Woodhead could grab hold. He could not.

His body was found in the river on Aug. 19, a kilometre south of Yale.

Though the large crowd was nearly silent and the mood was sombre, many cheered in a spectacular moment of the tribute.

Two fire hoses launched streams of water into the Fraser River from the bridge. As the hoses sprayed, three helicopters flew in a row above the river, south towards the 23 Camels. The middle helicopter carried a water bucket.

The middle helicopter released the water before reaching the bridge, prompting a shout of approval from the crowd.

The helicopters then flew over the bridge before breaking formation and turning around.

Bruce Rushton, the chaplain for the Canadian Fallen Firefighters Foundation, then played the last post and “Amazing Grace” on a trumpet.

Woodhead’s brother and children tossed flowers off the bridge into the river after Rushton played. They were followed by Lillooet Fire Department Deputy Chief David Harder, who invited the audience to release flowers and other mementoes such as poems, into the river.