Mann Gulch Fire, 64 years ago today

A wildfire entrapped 15 smokejumpers and a fire guard in Mann Gulch on August 5, 1949 on the Helena National Forest in Montana. The fire took the lives of 13 men and burned nearly 5,000 acres.

The fatalities:

  • Robert J. Bennett
  • Eldon E. Diettert
  • James O. Harrison
  • William J. Hellman
  • Philip R. McVey
  • David R. Navon
  • Leonard L. Piper
  • Stanley J. Reba
  • Marvin L. Sherman
  • Joseph B. Sylvia
  • Henry J. Thol, Jr.
  • Newton R. Thompson
  • Silas R. Thompson
The 13 men who were killed in the Mann Gulch fire. U. S. Forest Service photo.

The story of this fire was told by Norman Maclean in his book “Young Men and Fire”.

The sketch below is from the official report.

In light of the June 30 deaths of 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots on the Yarnell Hill Fire and their attempted use of an escape fire to create a refuge zone, you may be interested in a paper that analyzed Smokejumper Foreman Wag Dodge’s escape fire that probably saved his life on the Mann Gulch Fire. In the 27-page document written by Martin E. Alexander, Mark Y. Ackerman, and Gregory J. Baxter, they concluded that the size of Mr. Dodge’s escape fire was about 120 feet by 86 feet when it was overrun by flames from the main fire. Mr. Dodge later told investigators that he explained to the firefighters nearby that after the escape fire spread and cooled in the interior, they should take refuge in the new burned area with him. Unfortunately, none of them did.

The paper includes a statement made by Mr. Dodge that was included in Earl Cooley’s 1984 book, Trimotor and Trail.

When the main fire reached my area, I lay down on the ground on my side and poured water from my canteen on my handkerchief over my mouth and nose and held my face as close to the ground as I could while the flames flashed over me. There were three extreme gusts of hot air that almost lifted me from the ground as the fire passed over me. It was running in the grass and also flashing through the tree tops. By 6:10 p.m. the fire had passed by and I stood up. My clothing had not been scorched and I had no burns.

 

Here is a photo of Mann Gulch taken in 2008, from The Travels of John and Breya.

Re-visiting Mann Gulch

The Mann Gulch Fire, 63 years ago this week, took the lives of 13 smokejumpers. Norman Maclean’s 1992 book Young Men and Fire recounted the story of the most deadly event in smokejumper history at that time. Of the four survivors on the fire, only three managed to reach the ridgeline above them and escape the deadly fire.

USFS team recovering bodies from Mann Gulch in 1949. Photo by Dick Wilson, part of the recovery team, courtesy John Maclean.
USFS team recovering bodies from Mann Gulch in 1949. Photo by Dick Wilson, part of the recovery team, courtesy John Maclean.

Norman Maclean re-visited the gulch, in rugged northern Montana, when he was in his 80s. He was accompanied by the two living survivors, Walt Rumsey and Robert Sallee, and they tried to re-create the smokejumpers’ run for safety; Rumsey and Sallee tried to find the “crevice” at the ridgetop where they’d escaped. Maclean concluded, though, that the spot they identified for him on the ridge was considerably east of where they actually were in 1949.

Aerial view of the 1949 Mann Gulch Fire, USFS photo courtesy John Maclean.
Aerial view of the 1949 Mann Gulch Fire, USFS photo courtesy John Maclean.

H. Wayne Phillips of Great Falls, a former smokejumper, along with two other former smokejumpers and a former paratrooper, recently hiked Mann Gulch looking for answers to Maclean’s questions. The Great Falls Tribune today ran a feature on the hikers’ quest to find the spot where Sallee and Rumsey crested the ridge.

Thanks to John Maclean for use of the 1949 photos.

 

Mann Gulch fire–60 years ago

On August 5, 1949 on the Helena National Forest, a wildfire entrapped 15 smokejumpers and a fire guard in Mann Gulch. Before it was controlled the fire took the lives of 13 men and burned nearly 5,000 acres.

The fatalities:

  • Robert J. Bennett
  • Eldon E. Diettert
  • James O. Harrison
  • William J. Hellman
  • Philip R. McVey
  • David R. Navon
  • Leonard L. Piper
  • Stanley J. Reba
  • Marvin L. Sherman
  • Joseph B. Sylvia
  • Henry J. Thol, Jr.
  • Newton R. Thompson
  • Silas R. Thompson
The 13 men who were killed in the Mann Gulch fire. U. S. Forest Service photo.

The story of this fire was told by Norman Maclean in his book “Young Men and Fire”.

The Six Minutes for Safety overview of the fire is HERE.

As Wildfire Today reported earlier, on August 2-5, 2009 the Helena National Forest along with the National Smokejumpers Association will commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Mann Gulch fire at the Meriwether picnic area through informal interpretive programs highlighting the Mann Gulch Fire, impacts the Mann Gulch tragedy has had on firefighting techniques and smokejumping and the associated equipment.

Three smokejumpers—John McKinnon, Carl Gidland and Roland Anderson—will at the Meriwether picnic area to speak to people about Mann Gulch, current and historic fire fighting techniques and much more.

Here is a photo of Mann Gulch taken in 2008, from The Travels of John and Breya.

Mann Gulch survivor to speak at anniversary

UPDATE AT 2:55 MT, August 2

We received an email last night from Susan Schroedel who said:

Bob Sallee will NOT be in attendance at the 60th anniversary of the Mann Gulch fire. My husband and I spoke with him two days ago. My husband and many other former jumpers will be in attendance.

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From the Independent Record, Helena, MT:

One of the survivors from the 1949 Mann Gulch fire, Bob Sallee, will be at the Meriwether picnic area Aug. 2-5 as part of ceremonies commemorating the 60th anniversary of the deadly blaze.

On Aug. 5, 1949, a wildfire trapped 15 smokejumpers and a fire guard in Mann Gulch, near the Gates of the Mountains on the Missouri River. Before it was controlled, the fire took the lives of 13 men and burned nearly 5,000 acres.

The Helena National Forest, along with the National Smokejumpers Association, will be at the nearby Meriwether picnic area with informal interpretive programs highlighting the Mann Gulch Fire, impacts the Mann Gulch tragedy has had on firefighting techniques and smokejumping and the associated equipment.

Four smokejumpers — Sallee, John McKinnon, Carl Gidland and Roland Anderson — also will be at the Meriwether picnic area to speak to people about Mann Gulch, current and historic fire fighting techniques and much more.

For more information about the event, contact the Helena Ranger District office at 449-5490.