McDonough declined to discuss the controversy in detail when contacted by The Republic. "Brendan expressed concerns about talking to someone because he needed to talk," she said. , Another mile on is the junction with Cedar Springs Trail #41, which runs three miles northwest to Shroder Tank. As Eric looked after his hotshots crew and was away during fire season, Amanda tended to the horses and worked to grow her business. Granite Mountain Hotshots Death Photos. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. There was a scattering of other flower species. We wanted it to be real; we wanted the truth of who they are to be portrayed, Caldwell said. In the hours after, the Arizona . you. Still, lots of fresh fuel. Marsh had descended from a ridge to the safety of a ranch compound in Glen Ilah. Burned to death with 17 crewmen under his command because he ultimately followed marsh's orders. Ive been to the Granite Mountain Hotshots Memorial State Park, most recently in 2018. Originally founded in 2001 as a fuels mitigation crew, they were later formed into Crew 7, a Type II IA hand . But like I said earlier, I wasnt sure where, so Paul and I took our time, as I scanned for large, stand alone alligator junipers. We'll see if we can't take care of business for you.". Granite Mountain Hotshots as a 100-foot wall of flames closed in on them. Key evidence that could explain why the Granite Mountain Hotshots moved from a safe location into a treacherous box canyon where 19 men died on June 30, 2013, was in the Office of the Maricopa . "Division Alpha, Bravo 33. independent local journalism in Phoenix. 1:38. Yeah, you can walk right around it, onto Trail #38. ", The second clip begins with Marsh ending a sentence with "saying you know [unintelligible]." For quite some time, it has been tradition in Prescott not give exact directions to the juniper, I guess in attempt to maintain its serenity. They are just not coming home. Although McDonough's purported disclosure to Willis occurred in the fall, it had not surfaced publicly until now. "Not all facts are known, or will ever be known," Arizona State Forester Scott Hunt said today at a press conference at Prescott High School, where some of the Granite Mountain Hotshots went to school. ", .css-v1xtj3{display:block;font-family:FreightSansW01,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-weight:100;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-v1xtj3:hover{color:link-hover;}}@media(max-width: 48rem){.css-v1xtj3{font-size:1.1387rem;line-height:1.2;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:0.625rem;}}@media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-v1xtj3{line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 48rem){.css-v1xtj3{font-size:1.18581rem;line-height:1.2;margin-bottom:0.5rem;margin-top:0rem;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-v1xtj3{font-size:1.23488rem;line-height:1.2;margin-top:0.9375rem;}}60 Scientists Are Trying to Block the Sun, Particle Accelerator Reveals Beginning of Time, Earth's Inner Core Has Another Inner Core, 8 Questions About Turkey With an Earthquake Expert, Conspiracy: Blaming Weather Weapons for Earthquake, Scientists Just Discovered a Literal Hell, How the NFL Grew the Field for Super Bowl LVII, The Doomsday Clock Is at 90 Seconds to Midnight, Uh, Earth's Inner Core Just Stopped Spinning, Supercomputer: 27% of Earth's Life Dead by 2100, Why Bill Gates Keeps Buying Up So Much Farmland. 20 September, 2021. Granite mountain hotshots hiking to their assignment, june 30, 2013. On sunday, sits at a makeshift memorial outside the crew's fire station. 2023 Endeavor Business Media, LLC. But Payne declined to provide the name of the supervisor overseeing the Blue Ridge crew. The death of 19 granite mountain hotshots, which i wrote about for this magazine and, later, in a book, marked the worst wildland fire disaster in almost 100 years. Michael Chow, The Arizona . The question on why may go on unanswered forever.". of a mile west of Blair Pass,White Rock Spring Trail #39 passed through a small patch of unburnt trees, which provided welcome relief from the sun. Knutson-Felix said McDonough came to her last year because he was upset, but she advised investigators there was no discussion of radio transmissions and she could not recall specifics. A new twist in the death of granite mountain hotshots during 2013 yarnell hill fire. ideal standard wc sitz connect gu10 led lights grand scenic 3 bose noir idee deco chambre mur blanc. It was well deserved and Hollywood did right by Prescott., RELATED: Everythingto know before hiking Granite Mountain Hotshots Memorial State Park. Documents in the workplace-safety litigation reveal a fierce, behind-the-scenes fight over efforts to obtain or prevent McDonough's testimony. Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. "It's just 'he said, she said.' The names of representatives from YCSO and the Arizona Forestry Division appear on the autopsy reports as in attendance on 10 of the 19 autopsies that were conducted by four different doctors. "Little by little the truth is We may earn commission if you buy from a link. . We invite you to hike the trail to better understand the experience of these men as . Granite mountain hotshots dead bodies. By the time the autopsy reports were released, 12 of 13 wrongful-death lawsuits filed by the families of the deceased hotshots against the state Forestry Division, the city of Prescott, and the Central Yavapai (County) Fire District had been settled. They also indicate legal ramifications could be huge if Marsh overruled safety concerns by Steed and issued an order that brought the crew into the fire's path. But the more-important Canon camera, which included the two videos of Marsh and Steed, is not among YCSO evidence. Please enter valid email address to continue. The report warns of the "danger that a firefighter may become desensitized to extreme fire behavior, based on an old mental model that extreme fire behavior is rare." Jim Karels, state forester for the Florida Forest Service, led the 54-member investigation. Oddly, a list of suggested questions for fire managers to use to prompt discussions with their crews provides the most pointed critique of the hotshots' actions: "How might emotion trigger "automatic" movement, and how can we interrupt this circuit to engage in reflection that leads to more purposeful action?" Payne said there were one or two other division supervisors on June 30, and said he didn't believe that the Blue Ridge Hotshots were under Marsh's supervision. Please enable cookies on your browser and try again. In the three months since 19 wildland firefighters burned to death in Arizona, a key question has hung over .css-3wjtm9{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.125rem;text-decoration-color:#1c6a65;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:inherit;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-3wjtm9:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}the tragedy: Why did the men, all members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, choose to leave the relative safety of an already-burned hill and descend into the brush-dense box canyon where they were overcome by fast-moving flames? RELATED: Take a 360-degree tour of Granite Mountain hotshots memorial. homes were assessed for treatment, 137 chip jobs were completed, 101 hazardous trees felled, and 222 acres were treated with an additional 26 acres of open space. When Willis reported the conversation to Paladini and others, it set off a chain reaction of legal actions beginning with reports to the Arizona State Forestry Division, the Prescott City Council and the Arizona Attorney General's Office. Founded in 2002 as a fuels mitigation crew, it transitioned to a handcrew in 2004, and. He served 23 years in the fire service, protecting land, property and most i The YCSO was in charge of gathering all evidence from the medical examiner and later turning it over to the Serious Accident Investigation Team (SAIT), contracted by the Arizona Forestry Division to conduct the formal investigation into the Yarnell Hill Fire disaster. Amanda Marsh declined a request for an interview and has refused in the past to provide copies of Marsh's phone records from June 30, 2013. Thankfully no foxtail, like what fuelled the ongoing Woodbury Fire, which started a week after I hiked from Woodbury Trailhead into Fraser Canyon and Randolph Canyon. "There was so much happening. On June 30, it overran and killed 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots. The dangers they face were tragically demonstrated on June 30, 2013, when 19 of the 20 Granite Mountain Hotshots were killed at the Yarnell Hill Fire in Arizona. We've got several aircraft coming to some comfort. . A court dismissed the 13th suit last summer. - granite mountain hotshot stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images. The image appears to show the scene of where the 19. The burn damage is much more obvious along Trail #37, with many ghostly junipers. hear a helicopter? 10.1 miles from Courthouse Square, turn right onto Contreras Rd., which is smooth, wide, car-drivable dirt. The state-contracted SAI report concluded that no one did anything wrong, despite the fact that 19 men died in a box canyon. Email. Posted by jim nintzel. But when Granite Mountain radioed their distress, no one knew exactly where they were. Robert Anglen, Dennis Wagner, and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez. Verbena were everywhere, in all the shades between white & purple. The two nine-second videos were taken about 4 p.m. on June 30. 19 of the hotshots died while battling the Yarnell Fire in 2013, and on June 30, 2021, a memorial park was . "We assume they decided this on their own, believing they could re-engage and help defend Yarnell.". More than a year after 19 firefighters perished in the Yarnell Hill blaze, the crew's lone survivor purportedly made a shocking revelation: Granite Mountain Hotshots were ordered to leave their safe zone during a radio call between their supervisor and his chief deputy. Willis said McDonough's account was vague and inconsistent. On duty 100% cotton fire department, fire rescue and IAFF duty shirts are available in all sizes with personalization options.Firefighter fire dept logo of The Granite Mountain Hotshot Philip Keen, former chief medical examiner for Yavapai and Maricopa counties, said law enforcement determines what personal items accompanying bodies should be collected for evidence and what should be released to funeral homes, which then provide personal effects to relatives. Between 4:04 and 4:37, when they first radioed that they were in trouble, the men had no communication with supervisorsor anyone else. Granite Mountain Hotshots Death Photos. Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk refused repeated media requests under the Arizona Public Records Lawfor them in the months immediately after the fire. Brendan McDonough, who had separated from the crew earlier in the day, survived . The recordings were released after an investigation revealed commanders made numerous mistakes managing the wildfire that killed the 19 hotshots and . Marsh said McDonough has never talked to her about what he might have heard on the radio. The penstemon were the reddest I have ever seen. Rather than return, so soon, for a third time, I decided to visit the massive alligator juniper Granite Mountain saved during the Doce Fire, which threatened Prescott only a week before the Yarnell Hill burnover. After spending an hour documenting all the mementos, Paul and I took an ant-free break, before heading 1.6 miles downhill, back to the trailhead at Division Well. The SAIR does not mention the two videos that may show a disagreement between Marsh and Steed. Granite mountain hotshots hiking to their assignment, june 30, 2013. December 14, 2013 / 9:33 PM It's very easy to Monday-morning quarterback all of these things that happened. As one expert quoted in the report says: "The scale of fires today is extreme. A thunderhead swirled over Yarnell and the firestorm reversed direction. Granite Mountain Hotshots Alligator Juniper from Preston McMurry on Vimeo. A group of men known as the Granite Mountain Hotshots - a tight-knit team of experts trained to fight out-of-control wildfires - died on June 30, 2013 while battling the Yarnell Hill fire . The radio exchange turned into a dispute. The report deliberately avoids placing blame. Journalist john dougherty's investigative media. Though there was a large air tanker in the air, ready to drop retardant as soon as the hotshots' location could be pinpointed, the plane could not find the men. A cell phone belonging to Granite Mountain superintendent Eric Marsh and a functioning camera belonging to hotshot Christopher MacKenzie were with the men's bodies when they arrived at the Medical Examiner's Office on July 1, 2013, but were not listed as evidence turned over later to the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office. Yes. Steed did not want the crew to leave its safe zone but subsequently relented to Marsh's order, according to the account provided by Paladini. One of those people was his supervisor (Willis)," she said. Photo by Joy Collura. Mike MacKenzie was surprised to discover it was still functioning, the paper reported. Juliann Ashcraft, a widow of a Granite Mountain Hotshot, said she left Prescott, Ariz., to spare her children the discomfort of whispers and glares. The Granite Mountain Hotshot crew was working on the south side. A study from Robert Half offers six practices that will make employees happy, and productive. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. dispatch. McDonough puportedly overheard radio transmissions about the crew's last movements%2C city officials say. The death of 19 granite mountain. Granite Mountain Hotshots hiking to their assignment, June 30, 2013. He said he did not want to violate a confidence, and gave McDonough a weekend to publicly reveal the information. Granite Mountain Hot Shot Firefighter Autopsy Reports2013 Yarnell Hill Fire. The Granite Mountain Hotshots were a crew within the Prescott Fire Department whose mission was to fight wildfires and when not so, engaged in work to reduce growth of fire-prone vegetation. audio provides a fuller picture of the fight against a catastrophic wild fire At some point, as a wall of flame moved in, Marsh joined the hotshots and became trapped with them several hundred yards from the ranch house. Whereupon we proceeded to play merry-go-round for a few minutes while I tried to get a shot. Paladini offered the following account of McDonough's story, as he says was related to him by Willis, who disagrees: While moving vehicles with the Blue Ridge crew, McDonough allegedly overheard radio traffic between Marsh and Steed, who was with 17 crew members atop a ridge that had burned days earlier. The federal Southwest Coordination Center oversees Arizona's 13 hotshot crews, which included Granite Mountain. YARNELL Lee and Diane Helm own a ranch 600 yards from where 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots died in the Yarnell Hill Fire on June 30, 2013. Previously disclosed videos and testimony indicated that Eric Marsh the crew's supervisor who was separated from the others to scout the fire and Jesse Steed Marsh's top deputy who was in charge of the crew had a radio discussion on the afternoon of June 30, 2013, shortly before the hotshots were overcome by flames. Long Canyon was laid out in a panorama below us. Prescott fire chief dan fraijo later confirmed that all 19 were from the granite mountain hotshots. Yavapai County released the reports a couple of days later. "I think it shows there was, in hindsight, errors in judgment," Wilcox said, adding: "only in hindsight. Louan Heysck, of Prescott, Az., salutes during a public memorial. reads another. The report states that there was lack of communication between Granite Mountain and fire supervisors in the 33 minutes leading up to their desperate call for help at about 4:37 p.m. "There is much that cannot be known about the crew's decisions and actions prior to their entrapment and fire shelter deployment around (4:42 p.m.)," the report states. December 16, 2015 Of course, there were investigations, findings, recommendations, policy changes. The two state investigations into the deaths of 19 members of the granite mountain hotshots released. Autopsy records for MacKenzie show a phone and a Canon camera present in the body bag that contained MacKenzie's remains. entire squad of the Prineville Hotshots on the South Canyon Fire (which is often mistakenly. Browse 368 granite mountain hotshot stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. Shows moments before their radios went silent. marked what is believed to be the final transmission from the 19 "hotshot" crew members killed in the June 30 disaster, the greatest loss of life from a U.S. wildfire in 80 . OSHA to Follow White Houses Lead in 2023. Video from a firefigher's helmet cam I loved them.. "I'm just not doing anything within the media involving around any of that kind of stuff," he added. From the trailhead, the 2.85-mile path will lead you up to the observation deck. Visiting the juniper during a loop hike of Upper Pasture Trail #38, Little Granite Mountain Trail #37 and White Rock Spring Trail #39, is 6.6 mi. Early that morning, the ranchwhich had excellent defensible space and survived the fire unscathedwas identified in a group meeting as "a bomb-proof safety zone." Just one of the hotshots on the crew survivedhe was posted as a lookout on the fire and was not with the others when the fire overtook them. "The basic question in my mind is why didn't [SAIT investigators] ask for the cell-phone records?" Selden argued that McDonough's recollections may be critical to understanding why Granite Mountain Hotshots abandoned a safe zone. In this June 2, 2012 file photo, crew members from the Granite Mountain Hotshots of Prescott, Ariz., cut a fire line along a mountain ridge outside Mogollon, N.M.. Nineteen members of the crew . Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Granite Mountain Hotshots Memorial State Park was dedicated in 2016 as a place to remember the 19 Granite Mountain Hotshot Firefighters who were lost on June 30, 2013, while fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire. On june 30, it overran and killed 19 members of the granite mountain hotshots. Granite Mountain Hotshots team leader Eric Marsh radioed through to let his commanders know the group had a predetermined safety zone. The new website provides industry-specific content for employers in chemical manufacturing, construction and transportation industries. This video captures the audio of the last three minutes of radio transmissions from the Granite Mountain Hotshots before they were entrapped by fire and kill. Today, the investigators released their long-awaited report, and unfortunately it doesn't offer a definitive answer. As it stands, the city had entered only six . About Granite Mountain Hotshots Memorial State Park. The phone, however, is not listed as evidence in the autopsy report signed by. Still, I determined to find the juniper for myself. Fourteen shots, jumpers, and helitac crewmen at South Canyon, while the entire Granite Mountain hotshot crew, nineteen men, died at Yarnell Hill. These photos many of them taken by members of the Hotshot crew that perished on June 30 give us a sense of the enormity of the challenge that firefighters faced in battling a raging, wind-driven wildfire on rugged, mountainous terrain. (Respect from one warrior to 20 other warriors.) It was his third season on the team, and after being named the Granite Mountain Hotshots rookie of the year in 2011, he was in a leadership positio "This is a matter of extreme sensitivity. Get the latest updates in news, food, music and culture, and receive special offers direct to your inbox. 0:34. "I felt that it was more important for them to know and for them to talk to him because all of it was coming from me as hearsay," Willis explained. Here is a photo tour of the trails, the memorials, and. The hike starts by heading north across the wash, followed by a short, but steep, climb up FR 38 to a fenceless gate. Instead, they are among thousands of pages of supporting documentsreleased to the media in December 2013. Thu 4 Jul 2013 16.08 EDT. Granite Mountain 7! Paladini stood by his account when told that Willis challenged it. Newly-released video reveals the chaotic moments before 19 'hotshot' firefighters were killed in Arizona wildfire. The Maricopa County medical examiner conducted autopsies on the bodies of all 19 hotshots for Yavapai County on July 2, 2013. The YCSO report, however, includes MacKenzie's phone as evidence. He marks the anniversary by remembering the 19 men he calls his brothers. What Does that Mean for Employers? The YCSO has no record of Marsh's phone or of MacKenzie's camera as official evidence collected from the medical examiner, according to a YCSO police report. Republic reporter Richard Ruelas contributed to this article. New Times filed a request for the autopsy reports under the Arizona Public Records Law in October, more than two years after Polk refused to release the autopsy records, citing privacy concerns. It's already been suggested that every wildland firefighter carry a GPS unit that would allow supervisors to instantly find them in the field, and some family members of the victims are calling for better fire shelters. coming out," said Juliann Ashcraft, whose husband, Andrew, was one of There was a small lizard on the Trail #41 sign. McDonough, who no longer works for the city, has obtained private legal counsel, David Shapiro. ", Willis declined to verify Paladini's version of the critical radio conversation, and said he never quoted McDonough as saying that the crew was ordered off the ridge by Marsh. Reuters. Amanda Marsh, the Granite Mountain supervisor's widow, said Friday that if there was not a recording of the entire conversation, then it is hearsay. The autopsy report notes that the Canon S1400IS still was working. (Driving directions below.) Phoenix. The protective tents of high-tech fabric that each man carried were completely overcome by the intensity of this fire, which approached at about 11 mph as it overcame the team (that's 100 yards in 19 seconds). As you make your way, you will encounter 200+ stairs carved from the surrounding rock, interpretive signs, benches and 19 memorial plaques. Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo later confirmed that all 19 were from the Granite Mountain Hotshots. Prineville Hotshots because they were working in the DEATH ZONE, which is a canyon above a. wildfire. Prescott City Councilwoman Jean Wilcox, a lawyer, said the council was notified by the city attorney last year of purported key revelations about the crew's movements. June 30 was a sunday, a normal sunday for me in the summer. It's not real.". Follow the 19 arrows left, on Trail #39, to head straight to the juniper. The report also states that investigators had "no indication that anyone asked them to move and does not know for certain why they moved.". Investigators offer lessons on the June 2013 fire and its aftermath, but avoid placing blame. Caldwell and other family members were involved in the movie-making process. As flames raced in, McDonough executed a preplanned escape from his lookout post and joined several members of the Blue Ridge Hotshots. www.firehouse.com is using a security service for protection against online attacks. The death of 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots, which I wrote about for this magazine and, later, in a book, marked the worst wildland fire disaster in almost 100 years. The image showed up on a social media page devoted to the granite mountain hotshots on thursday; The image appears to show the scene of where the 19. Lieutenant Boelts said he was at the Medical Examiner's Office when the autopsies were performed but that he didnt observe the autopsies: I was there in an administrative role. "You're going to have to talk to [the Serious Accident Investigation Team]," Boyd says. Century plants also represented. The crew . "My understanding of the argument between Eric Marsh and Jesse Steed was that Steed did not want to go down," Paladini said. 5:00AM. "Data downloads will be attempted for the state investigators, and the phones will then be returned to the fire department and eventually the families.". By the time I got my camera out, he had moved to other side of the sign. When that failed, Willis said, he contacted Paladini and then-state Forester Scott Hunt. That's what's normal now. investigation revealed commanders made numerous mistakes managing the wildfire the fire then? YARNELL, AZ - We are now learning more about what happened on June 30 when 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots deployed from Prescott, Ariz. died while battling the Yarnell Hill Fire. In addition to costs associated with chronic diseases due to obesity, productivity rates are lower and absenteeism is higher. Granite Mountain Hotshots Memorial State Park is a state park near Yarnell, Arizona, created to memorialize the nineteen members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots who died there on June 30, 2013, while fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire.. He enlisted in the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a team of elite firefighters based in Prescott, Arizona. The broken chain of custody of two key pieces of key evidence further undermines the integrity of the investigation of the worst loss of life suffered by wild-fire suppression teams (known as Interagency Hotshot Crews) since 1946, when the first such crew was formed. Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. The Granite Mountain Hotshots were born of a simple premise: the town of Prescott needed protection from wildfires. the deaths of 19 members of the granite mountain hotshots released to the public in 2013 did not include the complete autopsy and toxicology reports of the men who were . Messages left with the Florida Forest Service requesting an interview with Karels were not returned. Exactly what they were thinking when they left that safe zone and descended into "the green"an area with ten-foot, dense chaparral that, like the entire region, had been experiencing extreme drought, will never be known for sure. The photos and videos do not appear in the investigators' formal 122-page Serious Accident Investigation Report (SAIR) released to the families and public on September 28, 2013. He marks the anniversary by remembering the 19 men he calls his brothers. A draft of an upcoming field presentation by the state Forestry Division for the family members of the 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots killed on June 30, 2013 at the Yarnell Hill Fire is marred by . Widow of hotshot boss Eric Marsh says he %22made the best decisions with the information that he had at the time and I believe that to be true because I know him.%22. "At some point, the whole truth the whole story has to come out," he said. He said, before radio transmissions from the scene fell. Half of the World Will be Obese by 2035. McDonough so far has not been deposed in legal cases stemming from the accident. There is no question that they were aware of a 3:26 p.m. weather report that predicted shifting winds of up to 50 mph. They were released four months after all litigation filed by the families of hotshots seeking $237 million in damages from the state Forestry Division and Yavapai County had been settled. There is no evidence, the investigators note, that anyone asked the hotshots to move location. Robert Anglen, Dennis Wagner, and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez. Willis, who supervised the Granite Mountain crew and since has retired, said he gave a CD with the photos and videos to SAIT investigators. Copyright 2023 Preston V. McMurry III | WordPress Theme by MH Themes, Granite Mountain Hotshots Memorial State Park, Granite Mountain Hotshots Alligator Juniper. There are many mementos on & about the juniper: Money, ammo, tins of chewing tobacco, American flags, painted rocks, t-shirts, crosses, challenge coins, bells, chimes, wristbands, sweat rags, patches, hats, and even a Navy SEAL trident. Around noon, the Blue Ridge Hotshot leadership met with Granite Mountain leadership, and they agreed to post a Granite Mountain member as a lookout. The team visited the accident site, reviewed audio and video files, interviewed individuals associated with the incident, reviewed fire, weather, and behavior data, and examined available records and physical evidence. The settlement also stipulates that the state will make a good faith effort to implement reforms. ", Willis told The Republic he has a close relationship with McDonough and has been a sounding board since the Yarnell Hill tragedy. "[Checking] cell phone records in this day and age is basic.". asks Ted Putnam, a retired federal wildfire fatality investigator who participated in the investigation of the South Canyon Fire that killed 14 firefighters in Colorado in 1994.