19 firefighters killed in Arizona blaze; 'Our entire crew was lost'
(CNN) -- They were part of an elite squad who confronted wildfires up close, setting up barriers to stop their destructive spread.
But the inferno blazing across central Arizona proved too much.
The 19 firefighters were killed Sunday while fighting the Yarnell Hill fire, northwest of Phoenix. It is the deadliest blaze for firefighters since the 9/11 attacks.
"Our entire crew was lost," Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo told reporters Sunday night. "We just lost 19 of some of the finest people you'll ever meet. Right now, we're in crisis."
The firefighters were members of a "hotshot" crew, tasked with digging a firebreak and creating an escape route.
"A hotshot crew are the elite firefighters," state forestry spokesman Art Morrison said. "They're usually (a) 20-person crew, and they're the ones who actually go in and dig the fire line, cut the brush to make a fuel break. And so they would be as close to the fire as they felt they safely could."
Lately I've taken a keen interest in firefighters, especially volunteer firefighters who spend thousands of dollars out of their own pockets, sans any taxpayer support, to protect life and property. I've met with these folks, on the fireline in Lime Gulch, at the USFS Command Post for Lime Gulch and my natural cynicism went looking for a "kink in their armour." Didn't happen... what I did find was that these folks are practically 100% dedicated to doing one simple thing... protecting the community.
My heart goes out to the families, the community and the brotherhood of firefighters everywhere. A tragedy like this ripples through the firefighting profession, volunteers and full time professionals alike. They all deserve an extra pat on the back today.
RIP. My thoughts and prayers are with their families and friends.
Please consider a donation to Wildland Firefighter Foundation, which provides much needed assistance during times like this -
http://www.wffoundation.org/Index.asp
Experience enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again - Jeanne Pincha-Tulley
Comprehensive is Latin for there is lots of bad stuff in it - Trey Gowdy
My heart to goes out to the families and to their peers who will also bear the loss very hard. I also got to spend some time with some of these brave men and women and they are totally focused on protecting our communities...... my heart is heavy for their loss. And to any who volunteer as a firefighter... thanks for all you and your brothers and sisters do.
