Injured Australian firefighter released from hospital

One of the two Australian firefighters that were seriously injured when their engine was overrun by a bushfire has been released from the hospital. The 24-year old woman, whose name has not been released, had burns over 40 percent of her body and had been treated at the at the Royal Perth Hospital.

Wendy Bearfoot
Wendy Bearfoot

Her colleague, 45-year old Wendy Bearfoot, passed away on Thursday, November 1, after suffering burns over 60 percent of her body while fighting the same fire on October 12. Both of the firefighters worked for the Department of Environment and Conservation in Western Australia.

Ms. Bearfoot joined the Department in 2003 as an Indigenous Land Management Trainee and progressed through the roles of conservation employee, national park ranger and most recently overseer in the Albany District office.

Both firefighters had been suppressing a fire in a pine plantation with 20 other firefighters near Albany when strong winds caused the fire to suddenly change direction on a slope. Three other firefighters were also injured in the burnover and were treated at a hospital in Albany.

Burned engine, Photo credit Department of Environment and Conservation
Burned fire engine in Western Australia. Photo credit: Department of Environment and Conservation

Morning briefing, October 29, 2012

CAL FIRE Line of Duty Death

A Battalion Chief with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has died while on duty. Battalion Chief Rob Van Wormer, 47, who was based in Santa Clara County was working on an investigation when he suddenly lost consciousness and died, despite numerous attempt to revive him. Chief Van Wormer had worked for CAL FIRE for 24 years conducting investigations and also had a long history in the aviation program.

Ken Pimlott, Chief of CAL FIRE, released a statement.

Our sincere condolences go out to the Chief’s family and coworkers.

Man charged with felony trash burning

The Cortez Journal reports that Roger Stratton has been charged with felony fourth-degree arson for allowing his trash fire to get out of control, which started the 400-acre Roatcap Fire in Colorado’s Montezuma County. The fire started Wednesday morning and forced the evacuation of about 30 homes.

Sid Beckman named FMO for National Park Service’s Pacific West Region

(From the NPS)

Sid Beckman has been selected as the new fire management officer for Pacific West Region (map of NSP Regions), working out of the San Francisco office. He replaces Sue Husari, who recently retired after 39 years of exemplary federal service. Beckman has a strong background in fire management planning, operations and incident management. His experience in prescribed fire and wildland fire management will be an asset to the region.

Beckman has three years of experience working for the National Park Service. He has been the deputy regional fire management officer overseeing the region’s fuels management program since 2009. He previously served as a fire management specialist in the U.S. Forest Service Enterprise Program. He has also worked as a battalion chief with the Stanislaus National Forest and has had a variety of other fire management positions, including fuels management specialist, hotshot, and fire engine operator on the Angeles and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forests.

“I am honored to work with the dedicated fire management staffs in the national parks of the Pacific West Region, and look forward in assisting them in their continued success managing prescribed and wildland fire,” Beckman commented upon hearing of his selection.

Beckman lives with his wife in the Sierra Nevada town of Arnold, California, and will be residing in the Bay Area during the week. When in the mountains, he enjoys hiking, snowshoeing, and skiing. A lifelong Detroit Tigers fan, Beckman also noted that “the Tigers have won 10 World Series — four more than the San Francisco Giants!”

Currently the acting FMO, Beckman will formally begin his new assignment in November.

Response by the land management agencies and firefighters to the effects of Hurricane Sandy

On Monday we will put together some information about how the land management agencies and firefighters are responding to prepare for and help the east coast recover from the impacts of Hurricane Sandy. If you have information about firefighters and incident management teams that are responding, let us know in a comment below, or visit our Contact Us page to give us a call (8 a.m. to 6 p.m. MT) or send us a message.

Double firefighter fatalities in Portugal

FirefighterCloseCalls is reporting that two Portuguese firefighters have died as a result of burns they received while working on a wildfire:

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DOUBLE FIREFIGHTER LINE OF DUTY DEATH IN PORTUGAL

In Portugal, on September, 21st, Volunteer FF Pedro Manuel Santos Brito died in the Line of Duty from burns. He passed away in the University of Coimbra Hospital. A member of the Corpo de Bombeiros Voluntários de Côja, FF Brito suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns while operating in a wildland fire in the woods of Casal Cimeiro, in Arganil, Portugal on Sep. 15th. The same fire also had already claimed the life of 25-year-old Volunteer FF Patrícia Alexandra Rodrigues Abreu. Three other FFs were injured in the blaze, but are recovering well. Our condolences to all affected. RIP.

Timber faller dies on a fire in Washington state

An individual working as a timber faller on the Wenatchee Complex Fire near Entiat, Washington became ill on the fire line Monday afternoon, September 17. According to a news release by the Incident Management Team, he was treated by incident medical personnel and transported to a nearby hospital. He passed away later Monday evening.

At the request of the family, the individual’s name is being withheld.

We offer our sincere condolences to the family.

UPDATE at 12:19 p.m. MT, September 19, 2012:

Today the Incident Management Team on the Wenatchee Complex Fire identified the deceased as Chris Seelye, a timber faller from Darby, Montana.

 

Thanks go out to Kelly

Safety issues noted one day before Steep Corner Fire fatality

Anne Veseth, a 20-year-old firefighter from Moscow, Idaho, was killed August 12 while working on the Steep Corner Fire near Orofino, Idaho. The U.S. Forest Service firefighter was struck when one tree fell and crashed into another tree, causing it to fall in a domino effect.

On August 11, the day before Veseth was killed, the Flathead Hotshots arrived at the Clearwater-Potlatch Timber Protection Association (CPTPA) station to work on the Steep Corner Fire. They were briefed, received a radio clone, and showed up at the fire about 2 p.m., where they located the CPTPA incident commander. He briefed them on tactical duties, according to the SAFENET report filed three days later, but “had to be prompted for specifics on everything else.” The hotshot report said there was no direct link to Grangeville dispatch, no information on EMS or weather, and no medical plan besides “call the county.”

The report listed a slew of other heads-up flags on the incident, including no mention of hazards and no direction other than “jump in the middle and work south.” The IC was wearing jeans, and the hotshots immediately noticed several other CPTPA personnel without PPE or shelters.

The Flathead superintendent told the IC that they’d go scout the fire before committing the crew, and the IC told him to head down the burned line through the middle of the fire. The hotshot foreman then briefed the crew, and they established their own LCES and posted the first lookout of the day on the fire. The scouting superintendent radioed back that no one should be sent down the burned line — which was still hot — through the middle of the fire because of snag hazards and previously cut log decks.
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Inmate firefighter dies after falling ill on California fire

The 2,681-acre Buck Fire south of Hemet, California, was fully contained on Friday morning, and the North County Times reported that an inmate firefighter died yesterday after he became ill on the fire.

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and Cal Fire are investigating the illness and subsequent death of 44-year-old Jimmy Randolph, who died at a hospital in Palm Springs with his family at his bedside. The cause of death will be announced after an autopsy is completed.

(UPDATED July 13, 2017. Mr. Randolf died in a hospital August 19, 2012 seven hours after he was found unresponsive where he was sleeping at the fire. The cause of death was listed as anoxic encephalopathy combined with complications of heat stroke.)

Buck Fire location

Fenner Canyon Conservation Camp on the Angeles National Forest houses minimum-security inmates and is operated jointly by CDCR and Cal Fire.

The Buck Fire also had a microburst rip through the ICP early Thursday, with hard rain and hail and 60 mph gusts that sent tents and much of the camp skittering across the ground. The fire, ignited by lightning last Tuesday, was also plagued with injuries; according to the Desert Sun, one firefighter was taken to a hospital for minor injuries. Three other firefighters incurred minor injuries, along with two civilians, one of whom suffered severe third-degree burns to his legs.

Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating a marijuana patch discovered in the area. According to the L.A. Times, firefighters encountered two men trying to protect the small grove of plants.

This fire had more than its share of weirdness. The Desert Sun also reported that a 59-year-old local man was charged with driving over a fire captain’s foot on Tuesday afternoon. Gregory Lance Good is being held in lieu of $30,000 bail on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and interfering with a firefighter in the line of duty. He was arraigned in Riverside County Superior Court and entered a “not guilty” plea.

Commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Blackwater fire

Blackwater Fire

Blackwater FireLast May we had an article about the 1937 Blackwater fire that killed 15 firefighters east of Yellowstone National Park. On Sunday and Tuesday the U.S. Forest Service will be holding events to commemorate the 75th anniversary of that tragic fire.

A lightning strike on Aug. 18, 1937 in the Shoshone National Forest at the eastern border of Yellowstone National Park sparked a wildland fire that burned for two days in remote terrain before it was reported to the U.S. Forest Service.

The first men to respond were members of the Civilian Conservation Corps, a New Deal program that put the unemployed to work in the nation’s parks and public lands on a wide range of public works projects.

On Aug. 21, three days later, the Blackwater Fire had grown from a couple of acres to about 200, and dozens of men were fighting the fire in rugged terrain south of U.S. Highway 14/16/20, about 12 miles east of Yellowstone’s eastern boundary.

An oncoming cold front brought a sudden and unexpected shift of winds, catching many of the firefighters off-guard. Nine men were killed as the blaze quickly advanced, and six others later died from their burns. Another 38 were injured.

The 1937 Blackwater Fire burns in rugged country in the Shoshone National Forest east of Yellowstone National Park. (USFS archival photo)

The tragedy was the biggest loss of lives from a forest fire in a generation, and drew national headlines. A detailed investigation of the fatalities — the first of its kind — helped focus new attention on the importance of early attack of wildland fires, leading to the development of the smokejumper program.

The Forest Service has planned a series of events to mark the 75th anniversary of the fatal fire, including a ceremony at the roadside memorial between Cody, Wyo. and Yellowstone, and a hike to a backcountry memorial commemorating the fatalities.

To prepare for the 75th anniversary, the Forest Service has performed maintenance, restoration, and signing along the Blackwater National Recreation Trail and restoration work on the Clayton Gulch memorial marker.

On Sunday, Aug. 19, the Forest Service will lead a field trip at 9 a.m. from the Blackwater trailhead to the Clayton Gulch monument, with interpretation of points along the way. The 8-mile round-trip hike moves through moderately difficult terrain, with the trail starting at about 6,200 feet in elevation and rises to about 9,500 feet. Participants should plan on a six-hour trip. They should also bring their own lunch, drinking water, bear spray, appropriate attire for changing mountain weather and any additional necessary items.

On Tuesday, Aug. 21, the Forest Service will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Blackwater fire with a wreath-laying ceremony at 10 a.m. at the Firefighters Memorial. Guests will include former U.S. Sen. Alan Simpson and Forest Service director of fire and aviation Tom Harbour.
Thanks go out to Chris and Dick

Update on firefighter fatality in Idaho

Ann Veseth
Anne Veseth. Credit: Facebook

The firefighter that was killed by a falling snag on Sunday, August 12 has been identified as Anne Veseth of Moscow, Idaho, a second-year firefighter with the Nez Perce & Clearwater National Forests. She also worked for one year on a U.S. Forest Service trail crew. Ms. Veseth was 20 years old and was attending Lewis and Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho.

According to KLEWTV, she was working toward a Bachelor degree in Business administration after earning an associate degree in Auto Mechanics Technology. She was on the Dean’s List all four semesters.

Her older brother, Brian Veseth, is also a wildland firefighter.

A rosary will be held at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 1st and Polk, Moscow, Idaho (map) at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, August 17. Full Mass services will be held for Anne on Saturday, August 18, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church. The family asks that all firefighters attending the services wear their yellow shirts and green pants (clean, but used).

Two firefighters killed in Spain

Two firefighters have died while battling a fire in Spain’s eastern province of Alicante. Both of them passed away in an Alicante city hospital, one on Sunday and the other on Monday, after suffering injuries on the fire. Two other crew members are being treated in the hospital.

The fire in Alicante is one of six burning throughout Spain. On the Canary Island of La Gomera, hundreds of residents were forced to evacuate by boat to escape a wildfire.

Forest Service firefighter killed in Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service announced that a firefighter was killed in the line of duty Sunday afternoon, August 12, while working on the Steep Corner fire near Orofino, Idaho. The Lewiston Tribune reported that Rick Brazell, supervisor of the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest, said the firefighter was struck when one tree fell and crashed into another tree, causing it to fall in a domino effect. Anne Veseth, from Moscow, was killed while working on the Steep Corner fire near Orofino.

Veseth, 20, was a graduate of Moscow High School and a student at Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston. This was her second season as a firefighter. Her older brother is also a wildland firefighter.

The Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest said the Clearwater Potlatch Timber Protective Association (CPTPA) stationed out of Orofino, Idaho was managing the suppression response on the fire. CPTPA is a local cooperative initial attack association responsible for fire suppression in the area. The Forest Service was cooperatively assisting in suppression of the fire.

Our sincere condolences go out to the family and coworkers.