The 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots that died on the Yarnell Hill Fire June 30 were escorted back to Prescott today, closer to their home base. They were moved from the medical examiner’s office in Phoenix to the medical examiner’s office in Prescott, a distance of approximately 100 miles. A helicopter was circling overhead. The first part of the ground escort was about 20 officers on motorcycles.
These first three photos were taken on Highway 89 five miles north of Yarnell, Arizona.
Honor Escort, motorcycle officers
A few vehicles after the bikes was a Granite Mountain Hotshots’ crew carrier.
Honor Escort, Granite Mountain Hotshots’ crew carrier and the 19 hearses.
And then the 19 hearses, each with a sign in the window identifying the Hotshot inside.
Hearses for the Granite Mountain HotshotsYarnell Hill Fire-7-7-2013-Arizona Public Service company cranes with flags draped wait for the procession of hearses carrying the 19 fallen firefighters travels through Yarnell on highway 89 Sunday afternoon, on its way to Prescott. Photo by Tom Tingle/The Arizona Republic. Used with permission.
A memorial service for the Granite Mountain 19 will be held in Prescott Tuesday. We will remain in the area reporting on this historic event.
The first three photos were taken by Bill Gabbert.
White Draw Fire, South Dakota, July 29, 2013. Photo by Bill Gabbert
Last year we told you about a series of articles written by W. Scott Olsen, a professor of English at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. Mr. Olsen described the topic as “the war on wildfires out west, meeting shot-callers and looking at the operation from the inside”. The five articles are very well written, looking at the inside of firefighting from the eyes of an outsider.
He is working on a book that will be out next year and part of it has been published at the Huffington Post. This time he talks to a woman who had a very close call on a fire, having to run, literally, for her life. When the fire suddenly approached the road she and the crew were holding, she ran for hundreds of yards, falling three times. She had a serious burn on her arm and the hairs in her nose were singed indicating she inhaled superheated gasses.
Below is an excerpt from the article:
“I heard radio traffic about the paramedic coming. I smelt my skin burning. I felt a hot spot on my head. I threw my hard hat off and under my bandana was an ember burning my hair. My squad boss dumped a jug of water on my head immediately. I sat down and my knee immediately seized up. I couldn’t move it. The paramedic arrived and ordered a life flight through the helibase.”
Mr. Olsen tells what happened next and how it later affected her career.
The article does not mention anything about fire shelters being used. And the fact that she and presumably other crew members ran hundreds of yards apparently near the fire before they reached a safety zone, points out how reluctant firefighters can be to stop and get into their fire shelters.
After the investigation is complete of the Yarnell Hill Fire incident in which 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots died, we may find out how, when, and under what circumstances decisions were made about the use of fire shelters. Preliminary information indicates that some of the firefighters were found in their shelters and others were not, but 19 shelters were deployed.
A memorial site was dedicated today to honor the four people that died when the Modular Airborne FireFighting System (MAFFS) C-130 air tanker crashed in South Dakota exactly a year ago. MAFFS 7, from the 145 Airlift Wing in North Carolina, was dropping retardant to slow the spread of the White Draw Fire when it encountered turbulent air and crashed, killing Lt. Col Paul K. Mikeal, 42; Maj. Joseph M. McCormick, 36; Maj. Ryan S. David, 35, and Senior Master Sgt. Roberts S. Cannon, 50. Two crew members survived, Chief Master Sgt. Andy Huneycutt, and Master Sgt. Joshua Marlowe.
Family members had the opportunity Sunday to travel to the crash site about eight miles northeast of Edgemont, South Dakota. The new memorial is approximately 6 miles northeast of Edgemont on Highway 18 near the point of origin of the fire (map) where the motor home that started the blaze caught fire while pulling the grade between Edgemont and Hot Springs. The memorial consists of a gravel parking area with room for about six vehicles and it has two interpretive panels — one describing the White Draw Fire and the other covers the accident and the four victims.
The speakers at the dedication included: (left to right) Lt. Governor Matt Michels (at the podium); Lt. Col Dale Gadbois; Craig Bobzien, Forest Supervisor of the Black Hills National Forest; Jajor General Timothy Reisch, S.D. Adjutant General; Major General Gregory Lusk, N.C. Adjutant General, and Mike Ortner, Chairman, Fall River County Commission.The family members were sitting in the front row and received copies of proclamations and other items.At the beginning and end of his presentation, Lt. Governor Matt Michels turned around and saluted in the direction of the crash site.
These photos were taken at the Black Forest Fire near Colorado Springs, Colorado by Bill Gabbert, June 14 and 15, 2013. More information about the fire can be found HERE.
Very small fire hose, called “baby hose” by firefighters, just does not look right being pumped by a large Type 1 engine from the Denver Fire Department during mop up on the Black Forest Fire. Can you find it in the photo?Firefighters from Denver FD Engine 24 cut down a hazardous tree. The operation was used as a training opportunity.Firefighters from Denver FD Engine 24 discuss the cut on the tree stump after felling a hazardous tree. The trainee later cut the stump much closer to the ground. The operation was used as a training opportunity.Firefighters from Pueblo Engine 7 work with a dozer to put out a deep-seated fire in wood chips and sawdust on the Black Forest Fire.Black Forest Fire Incident Commander Rich Harvey (L) and Deputy Incident Commander Paul Broyles (R)The Eurocopter UH-72 Lakota is flown by the Army and the Army National Guard.
Lightning at Wind Cave National Park, July 23, 2012, Photo by Bill Gabbert.
(Originally published at 4:40 p.m. PT, June 10, 2013; updated at 11:45 a.m. PT, June 11)
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Sunday and Monday much of the Northern California foothills and mountains including the Sierra experienced significant thunderstorms with dry lightning. Nearly 6,000 8,000 lightning strikes were recorded. Over 50 60 small fires have been discovered that were ignited by lightning. Though most of the storm systems have moved out, CAL FIRE crews continue to respond to additional fires.
Below is a summary of some of the fires in four northern California CAL FIRE units as of Monday afternoon:
Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit: 21 fires, largest fire 4 acres
On Wednesday at noon firefighters from Hot Springs, South Dakota fought a vehicle fire inside a warehouse. They kept it from spreading into the vegetation and from what we could see from a distance they saved at least the primary shell of the warehouse. I doubt if the vehicle fared as well.
