Today July 6, 2015 marks another tragic anniversary (21 years ago) of 14 brave firefighters who were killed in the line of duty from what is often referred to as the "Storm King Fire”.
The South Canyon Fire was a 1994 wildfire that took the lives of 14 wildland firefighters on Storm King Mountain, near Glenwood Springs, Colorado, on July 6th, 1994.
On July 2, 1994, lightning sparked a fire near the base of Storm King Mountain, 7 miles (11 km) west of Glenwood Springs, Colora...
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!['Firefighters... Available 24/7/365.25
Courage * Strength * Honor
First In - Last out
Anything - Anytime - Anywhere
"Brotherhood Strong"
@[187557941277871:274:Brotherhood of Fire]
Graphic Art submitted by "Brotherhood of Fire" fan and frequent contributor - Pete Learmonth'](https://scontent-lga1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/p110x80/11000544_983563158344008_5792183217560788211_n.jpg?oh=012f1eafe4dd90ee1312fe7dd8bad893&oe=5622FC20)
!['The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) is a labor union representing professional firefighters in the United States and Canada.
The IAFF was formed in 1918 and is affiliated with the AFL-CIO in the United States and the Canadian Labour Congress in Canada. The IAFF is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and has some 300,000 members in more than 3,200 locals and affiliates in every U.S. state and in Canada.
According to the U.S. Fire Administration professional fire fighters protect about 85 percent of the United States' population.
The IAFF is one of the most active lobbying organizations in Washington. Its Political Action Committee, FIREPAC, is among the top 25 federal PACs among the more than 4,000 in the country.
The IAFF recently began talks with the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) of the United Kingdom, the United Firefighters Union of Australia (UFUA), and the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) that could eventually result in a global alliance of fire fighting unions to further the cause of their members around the world.
The IAFF was formed in 1918 to unite fire fighters—for better wages, improved safety, and greater service for their communities. At the start of the IAFF, fire fighters worked 24 hour shifts on continuous duty and received salaries as low as 29 cents an hour.
The IAFF is the driving force behind nearly every advance in the fire and emergency services in the 20th century—from the introduction of shift schedules early in the last century to the enactment of SAFER in 2003.
With extremely active political and legislative programs, and with recognized experts in the fields of occupational health and safety, fire-based emergency medical services and hazardous materials training, the IAFF has established professional standards for the North American fire service.
Today, the IAFF is the primary advocate for providing fire fighters and paramedics with the tools they need to perform their jobs.
The IAFF provides a strong voice in the development and implementation of new training and equipment, and has worked hard to ensure the proper staffing of fire and EMS departments.
President Harold A. Schaitberger is the ninth president in the IAFF’s 95-year history, and was the first to have been elected by acclamation in 2000.
He was re-elected to another four-year term in July 2012.
Under President Schaitberger’s leadership, the IAFF’s Political Action Committee, FIREPAC, has grown to more than $4.6 million and ranks among the top one percent of PACs in the nation.
His commitment to ensuring that the IAFF supports candidates and lawmakers who are friendly to fire fighters and their issues, regardless of political party, has significantly enhanced the union’s power and influence at all levels of politics.
The IAFF is a member driven organization—for fire fighters, by fire fighters.
I’m IAFF @[319960938364:274:Fresno City Firefighters - Local 753]
“Brotherhood Strong”
@[187557941277871:274:Brotherhood of Fire]
Post source: Wikipedia'](https://scontent-lga1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/p110x80/11667273_982551298445194_8444133456884492093_n.jpg?oh=68be2f693c49b363980d115a012e1cb7&oe=565C22EF)
!['* What are your thoughts about this?
Fire Critic Rhett Fleitz answers a mutual aid question from a Brother Firefighter :
Question: I volunteer for a combination department. Today I read a post about the IAFF sticker. (Professional Firefighters of Concord, NH - Local 1045 ) The person explained her interpretation of what it meant to have that sticker.
Now I'm not knocking Career Firefighters by no means but in today in the fire service we as volunteers are held to the same standards as the Career guys. The only difference is we don't get a check.
Shouldn't we all have a sticker like the IAFF that we can all show?
Career and volunteers together. Because in my opinion we are all professional firefighters.
Fire Critic says: (I didn't read the article) I am a career firefighter and a card carrying IAFF member and proud of both.
Quite simply, I am a proud firefighter.
The answer to your question about having a sticker like the IAFF that we can all show is this...we do.
We have hundreds if not thousands of stickers with maltese crosses on them we can all use to show our pride. The IAFF has a very well-known and easily recognizable logo that many IAFF firefighters put on their vehicles.
They show off their affiliation with the IAFF because they are proud.
It seems as though you feel left out because you can't use the IAFF logo because you don't belong. You shouldn't feel that way.
My IAFF sticker on my car doesn't mean that I am better than any other firefighter.
It means I am an IAFF firefighter.
If you put a maltese cross sticker on your car, I’ll get the idea.
Strong words Rhett!
"Brotherhood Strong"
@[187557941277871:274:Brotherhood of Fire]
Rhett Fleitz is known as "The Fire Critic" - Commentary on serious, humor, fun, and thought provoking topics related to the Fire and EMS Service.
Check out the blog: www.FireCritic.com'](https://scontent-lga1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/p110x80/10404331_982541755112815_1958636854736434188_n.jpg?oh=43039662254f10589bf98ef2fb53319b&oe=562C539B)
!['* The 10 and 18
The "Ten Standard Fire Orders" and "Eighteen Watchout Situations" have been developed over the course of the last five or six decades by the wildland fire community.
Sadly and tragically, each of the "Fire Orders" and "Watchouts" have been learned from incidents in which that specific situation has led to a fatality, entrapment, or near miss incident.
These are stressed, and re-stressed to wildland firefighters. Every firefighter is expected to remember each and every one of them.
The Standard Fire Orders are the laws to live by.
The Watchout Situations are indicators or trigger points that remind firefighters to reanalyze the LCES system (Lookouts, Communications, Escape Routes, and Safety Zones) and to re-evaluate their suppression strategies and tactics.
Each of these have been written by the blood of wildland firefighters who have lost their lives fighting fire.
One of the first tragedy fires that contributed to the development of the 10 & 18 was the "Mann Gulch Fire" in Montana. This happened in 1949 and 13 USFS Montana Smokejumpers were killed.
A book written by Norman Maclean called "Young Men and Fire" tells the entire story of the fire.
The Standard Fire Orders were revised (changed arrangement) in 2002.
You can re-read them or check them out here:
http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/safety/10_18/10_18.html
Stay safe Brothers and Sisters out on the line
Stay “Brotherhood Strong”
@[187557941277871:274:Brotherhood of Fire]
Post credit: Dylan Rader - www.angelfire.com
Photo credit: Jake Niece - www.jakeniece.com/fire'](https://scontent-lga1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/p110x80/10404343_982514655115525_4565004653418963761_n.jpg?oh=960708e05429dbbcf03ba3aae8036f63&oe=565C6753)
!['Today July 6, 2015 marks another tragic anniversary (21 years ago) of 14 brave firefighters who were killed in the line of duty from what is often referred to as the "Storm King Fire”.
The South Canyon Fire was a 1994 wildfire that took the lives of 14 wildland firefighters on Storm King Mountain, near Glenwood Springs, Colorado, on July 6th, 1994.
On July 2, 1994, lightning sparked a fire near the base of Storm King Mountain, 7 miles (11 km) west of Glenwood Springs, Colorado, USA.
Initially small and well away from private property, the fire was assigned low priority and allowed to smolder for the first two days. By July 4th, the fire had burned only 3 acres.
Nearby residents of Canyon Creek Estates, however, were growing increasingly concerned by the persistent blaze, prompting local authorities to take action.
Due to the ruggedness of the terrain, and the efforts necessary to coordinate the incident response, it was decided that the fight against the fire would commence the following morning.
On July 5th, firefighters began their approach from the west at the east end of Canyon Creek Estates, making a difficult march up the rugged terrain along what is the present location of the Storm King Mountain Memorial Trail. Firefighters began constructing firelines to contain the blaze.
The fight was joined that evening by smokejumpers who began aiding in the construction of the fireline, working well on into the night of July 5 but quitting early due to "danger from rolling rocks".
The following day, twenty Hotshots from Prineville, Oregon, were rushed to the fire to aid in the battle. That afternoon, a dry cold front passed through the area, increasing the winds and fire activity.
By 4 p.m., the fire had "spotted" beyond the fireline and below the firefighters' location to the west and began to race towards them up the steep, densely vegetated terrain.
Twelve firefighters were unable to outrun the blaze and perished. Two more helitack firefighters were also killed as they tried to flee to the northwest.
The Storm King Mountain Memorial Trail, erected following this tragedy leads visitors to the site. It closely follows the actual path the firefighters hiked to fight the blaze.
Plaques and memorials line the trail explaining the events and paying homage to those who fell.
Memorials have also been constructed at Two Rivers Park in Glenwood Springs, and at Ochoco Creek Park in Prineville, Oregon.
Many lessons learned and some sadly reinforced from this incident.
Gone, but NEVER FORGOTTEN…
Prineville Hotshots: Kathi Beck, Tamera Bickett, Scott Blecha, Levi Brinkley, Douglas Dunbar, Terri Hagen, Bonnie Holtby, Rob Johnson, Jon Kelso.
Missoula Smokejumper: Don Mackey
McCall Smokejumpers: Roger Roth, Jim Thrash.
Helitack: Robert Browning, Jr., Richard Tyler.
“Brotherhood Strong”
@[187557941277871:274:Brotherhood of Fire]
Post source: Wikipedia
Photo Credit: Andrew Gulliford
Source: Durango Herald'](https://scontent-lga1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/p110x80/11402692_982513591782298_9092058477856517143_n.jpg?oh=e8117eb2b712b8957c7c16ef7e4bc247&oe=561D3503)
!['Cover photo by Jake Niece
Raised and educated in Colorado, Jake is a fire engineer turned outdoor photographer.
Based in Southwest Colorado, his positions include wildland firefighter in the summer and snowmaker comes winter. Both these positions afford Jake a “behind the scenes” stunning vistas and perspectives that are often overlooked.
You can check out more of his work here:
http://www.jakeniece.com/fire/
Strong work Jake!
“Brotherhood Strong”
@[187557941277871:274:Brotherhood of Fire]'](https://scontent-lga1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xtp1/v/t1.0-9/p118x118/11707606_982504965116494_4558704112823241877_n.jpg?oh=dd454273efe3ad5b071718e9eb07c854&oe=561D8E02)
!['“Heroes Remembered”
They woke up that morning
Not knowing it'd be their last
They fought that fire aggressively
But it turned on them, just way too fast
They went out heroes
The bravest a man can go
Many will try to understand
But still, they’ll never really know
How it feels to lose a brother
Even one you've never met
Bonded by a love for the job
And living life, with no regrets
Their fire burns within us
They're with us at each and every call
Pushing us to do better
Reminding us to always give it our all
They've never truly left us
They're in all of us along
They’re the pride after a job well done
The sense of danger… when something's wrong
So smile at the life they lived
Wipe your tears and dry your eyes
The legacy of these brave men lives on
A hero remembered… never dies
Poem by: “Brotherhood of Fire” fan and frequent contributor Firefighter Ana-Maria Garcia who wrote this poem in memory of the 19 brothers lost in Yarnell, Arizona on June 30, 2013.
The Yarnell Hill Fire was a wildfire near Yarnell, Arizona, ignited by lightning on June 28, 2013.
On June 30, it overran and killed 19 City of Prescott firefighters, members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots. The wildfire was fully contained by July 10, 2013.
This event resulted in the highest wildland firefighter death toll in the United States since the 1933 Griffith Park Fire killed 29 firefighters, and the highest death toll from any U.S. wildfire since the 1991 East Bay Hills fire killed 25 people.
It is the sixth deadliest American firefighter disaster overall and the deadliest wildfire ever in Arizona history.
Gone but NEVER FORGOTTEN:
Ashcraft, Andrew - Age: 29
Caldwell, Robert - Age: 23
Carter, Travis - Age: 31
Deford, Dustin - Age: 24
MacKenzie, Christopher - Age: 30
Marsh, Eric - Age: 43
McKee, Grant - Age: 21
Misner, Sean - Age: 26
Norris, Scott - Age: 28
Parker, Wade - Age: 22
Percin, John - Age: 24
Rose, Anthony - Age: 23
Steed, Jesse - Age: 36
Thurston, Joe - Age: 32
Turbyfill, Travis - Age: 27
Warneke, William - Age: 25
Whitted, Clayton - Age: 28
Woyjeck, Kevin - Age: 21
Zuppiger, Garret - Age: 27
Rest in Peace Brothers
Until we all meet again back at base camp…
“Brotherhood Strong”
@[187557941277871:274:Brotherhood of Fire]'](https://scontent-lga1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/p110x80/19020_978589335508057_2442833202294410870_n.jpg?oh=13cc8897cd016d875985116637b1d968&oe=5618F797)
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