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Tag: Yarnell Fire

Investigative Media explores decisions made on Yarnell Hill Fire

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 13 Comments on Investigative Media explores decisions made on Yarnell Hill Fire
Yarnell Hill Fire
Yarnell Hill Fire. Photo by Joy Collura.

John Dougherty of Investigative Media has been following very closely the developments surrounding the deaths of 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots June 30 on the Yarnell Hill Fire in Arizona. After spending a couple of hours with him in Prescott before the crew’s memorial service, I became convinced that he truly wants to determine the facts — exactly what happened and why.

John’s latest article about the fire, on his website and at the Phoenix New Times, lays out the decisions that were made during the first three days of the fire. He interviewed several wildland fire experts who questioned the findings of the official report which concluded no mistakes were made. His article also includes video interviews with Sonny “Tex” Gilligan and Joy Collura who were in the fire area from 4 a.m. until about 2 p.m. on June 30 and talked with the Granite Mountain firefighters.

Mr. Gilligan and Ms. Collura have been very generous with us, providing the information they know about the fire and sharing the photos she took that day.

The article is a must-read if you are interested in the fire. Below is a short excerpt:

Wildfire experts interviewed for this story identified key inadequately analyzed factors in the investigation that may have contributed to the tragedy, including:

–The state’s failed initial attack on the fire created a situation that later placed hundreds of firefighters at risk to put out a fire that could’ve been controlled easily.

–Once the initial attack failed, the state dispatched a skeleton management team to direct firefighting operations, but the team didn’t have sufficient resources to adequately fight the blaze. When it assumed control, the state’s “Type 2 Short” incident-management team lacked “safety officers” and “division supervisors” whose absence may have contributed to a breakdown in communications during the crucial 30 minutes before the hotshots died.

–The investigation report didn’t thoroughly examine the mental and physical condition of the Granite Mountain crew on the day it was dispatched to Yarnell — its scheduled day off and the 28th day it had worked in June.

 

Wildfire news, October 16, 2013

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , 4 Comments on Wildfire news, October 16, 2013

Boulder Fire Department to convert seasonals to full time

In a budget approved by the City Council on Tuesday, the Boulder, Colorado Fire Department will be able to convert its seasonal wildland firefighting crew to full time.

NFPA announces first Wildfire Preparedness Day

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) today announced its first national Wildfire Community Preparedness Day (Wildfire Preparedness Day) will take place on Saturday, May 3, 2014. Projects on May 3 can range from a short time commitment up to an entire day and can be undertaken by individuals or groups. Potential projects include hosting a chipping day, distributing wildfire safety information to neighbors, organizing brush clean up and more. Residents of all ages are invited to join in the effort. A list of project ideas is available at www.nfpa.org/wildfirepreparednessday/.

The 2014 Wildfire Preparedness Day comes on the heels of NFPA’s Colorado Wildfire Preparedness Day of Service that was piloted in May 2013 where nearly 600 volunteers participated in more than 16 projects across the state.

Charities raise millions for families of Granite Mountain 19

Charities have raised over $11 million for the families of the 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots that were killed June 30 on the Yarnell Hill Fire at Yarnell, Arizona.

Granite Mountain Hotshot Girls host benefit for Yarnell

A group of women made up of Hotshots’ mothers, wives, sisters, fiancées, and more, have joined forces to help give back some of the support they received. The group that calls itself the “Granite Mountain Hotshot Girls” will be hosting a benefit to help with the rebuilding efforts after the Yarnell Hill Fire swept through Yarnell destroying more than 100 structures in the town.

An all woman engine crew responds to a fire in Lexington, KY

It is surprising that this is a news item in 2013, but on September 5 in Lexington, Kentucky a three-person all women engine crew responded to a fire in the city. This is the first time an all women crew has responded to a fire in Lexington. The city made a big deal of it Wednesday, presenting the trio — Captain Maria Roberts, Amanda Arbogast and Sarah McGill — with certificates.

The women appreciated the recognition, but all agreed that they were just doing their job.

“It was just another run for us,” said Roberts, who joined the division in November 1999. “I had two really good firefighters riding in my truck and that’s not any different than any other day.”

In the 523-person fire department, 14 of them are women.

It will actually be news when similar occurrences are no longer news.

Another Yarnell area fire chief may lose his job

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , , 1 Comment on Another Yarnell area fire chief may lose his job

The Daily Courier is reporting that Central Yavapai Fire District Chief Paul Nies may lose his job. The newspaper said Chief Nies believes that his firing by the district’s Board of Directors may be inevitable.

Yavapai County is very large and includes Prescott, Arizona, as well as Yarnell and the site of the Yarnell Hill Fire which killed 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots on June 30. The Hotshot crew was part of the Prescott Fire Department.

Two other fire chiefs in the area are also gone or will be soon. Dan Fraijo, Chief of the Prescott Fire Department, is being forced out of his job by the City Manager.

Jim Koile, Chief of the Yarnell Fire Department announced his resignation October 8, two years after being selected for the position. He had been criticized for not spending a $15,000 grant in 2012 for removing flammable vegetation around homes in the community. And a few days before his resignation it was revealed that in 1974 he was convicted of manslaughter in the death of a 3-year old girl.

The Yarnell Hill Fire was initially evaluated by the Yarnell Hill Fire department but the suppression of the fire was the responsibility of the Arizona State Forestry Division.

Yarnell Fire Chief resigns

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 11 Comments on Yarnell Fire Chief resigns

Jim Koile, Chief of the Yarnell Fire Department announced his resignation Tuesday, two years after being selected for the position.

Just a few days after the Chief of the Prescott Fire Department was forced out of his job, another Fire Chief with ties to the Yarnell Hill Fire in Arizona is leaving his job. Jim Koile, Chief of the Yarnell Fire Department announced his resignation Tuesday, two years after being selected for the position. According to the Daily Courier, some members of the community applauded when the resignation was disclosed at a Fire District Board meeting.

Some residents pointed out that on the day the Yarnell Hill Fire was discovered, which later killed 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, no firefighters on the department took any action on the fire, and Chief Koile turned down an offer from the nearby Peeples Fire Department for assistance.

The chief had also been criticized for not spending a $15,000 grant in 2012 for removing flammable vegetation around homes in the community. The report on the fire noted about the town, “overgrown yards and indefensible houses, and … limited options for a protection strategy”, as well as “…many structures were not defendable…. The fire destroyed over one hundred structures”.

But perhaps the straw that broke the camel’s back was a story about his manslaughter conviction.

Below is an excerpt from an October 8, 2013 article in the Daily Courier:

In 1974, a Maricopa County jury convicted Koile of manslaughter in the death of 3-year-old Carla Kay Dahlstedt. Koile was a Mesa firefighter at the time.

According to court records, on Dec. 12, 1973, Koile said he spanked and pushed Carla, daughter of his live-in girlfriend, Alys Dahlstedt. The little girl hit her head on the edge of her crib and was knocked unconscious. Koile said he was disciplining Carla for lying.

Koile said he attempted mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and cardiac massage, but he thought Carla was dead. Panicking, Koile drove the toddler to the desert, near the Mesa dump, where he buried her.

When Dahlstedt came home, Koile told her that Carla had been abducted or wandered away, court records stated.

Six hours after he buried the toddler’s body, Koile recanted his story to police and led them to the burial site.

As police dug up the little girl, they discovered she was still alive and transported her to the hospital, court records read. Carla died a day later from brain damage.

Superior Court Judge Charles Roush reduced Koile’s conviction to involuntary manslaughter after Dahlstedt pleaded for leniency.

 

Incident Commander of the Yarnell Hill Fire reflects on the 19 fatalities

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags 1 Comment on Incident Commander of the Yarnell Hill Fire reflects on the 19 fatalities

The person who was in charge of the Yarnell Hill Fire the day 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots were killed was interviewed by The Republic recently. Incident Commander Roy Hall, submitting to his first detailed interview since the June 30 tragedy near Yarnell, Arizona, said there was “no smoking gun here”, referring to the report commissioned by the state of Arizona.

The article and a video of Mr. Hall can be seen HERE, but be advised the video will play automatically.

Mr. Hall arrived on the fire the morning of June 30. Usually an incoming team will observe and shadow the existing command structure for 12 to 36 hours before they take over a fire, but a few hours later at 10:22 a.m. an announcement was made over the radio that their team was assuming command. About six hours after that 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots were dead.

In the interview and in a written statement, Mr. Hall provided some background information about the fire and his feelings about the deaths.

Below is an excerpt from his statement, which has many capitalized words and exclamation points:

…we must realize and personally ACT NOW to STOP the speculation, questions, and cynicism of Monday morning quarterbacking! It will NOT bring back 19 of our best and finest comrades!

[…]

The risk and exposure of the wildland fire ground is well documented, however, there will ALWAYS be necessary decision space at the battlefield-fire line level.

The article also includes quotes from two of the Operations Section Chiefs on the fire. One of them, Paul Abel, said he verified with Division Supervisor Eric Marsh that the Granite Mountain crew was safe in a previously burned area, and they discussed the treacherous wind forecast. Mr. Abel said he still doesn’t know why the hotshots moved from the safe, black area and proceeded to a ranch, which had been identified as another safety zone.

****

Another article at the Arizona Republic, in today’s edition, quotes “experts” and authors of books about potential lessons learned in the Yarnell Hill Fire report.

 

Thanks go out to Chip

Prescott Fire Chief forced out

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 2 Comments on Prescott Fire Chief forced out

Granite Mountain HotshotsThe chief of the Prescott Fire Department is being forced out of his job by the City Manager. Even though this happened three months after 19 members of the department lost their lives on the Yarnell Hill Fire, the reason for Fire Chief Dan Fraijo’s departure is unclear.

Prescott City Manager Craig McConnell told the Daily Courier that the Chief is leaving by “mutual agreement” effective November 15, but Chief Fraigo told the Courier and the Arizona Republic that the city asked him to leave.

The 70-year old Chief, formerly with the Phoenix Fire Department, was hired on an interim basis in May, 2012 and was named Fire Chief in February, 2013. His contract specified that either party could end his employment with 30 days’ notice.

The official report of the 19 fire fatalities of the Granite Mountain Hotshots found “no indication of negligence, reckless actions, or violations of policy of protocol” on the part of the firefighters.

 

Thanks go out to Gary