Trial in fire-related CAL FIRE murder case postponed

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Trial in fire-related CAL FIRE murder case postponed

The trial of a man accused of setting a series of fires in Mountain Home State Park — fires that lead to the deaths of two people aboard a CAL FIRE plane — has been delayed.

Patrick Courtney, charged with two second-degree counts of murder and four counts of setting forest fires, was to have had his trial date set today. But his attorney, John Jackson, said he needs more time to prepare his case, said Tim Ward, a supervising deputy district attorney for Tulare County.

The trial will be rescheduled Dec. 19.

Courtney is accused of setting four small fires in Bear Creek drainage between Sept. 3 and 6, 2006. CAL FIRE Battalion Chief Rob Stone of Exeter and George “Sandy” Willett of Hanford, a contract pilot for CAL FIRE, died Sept. 6 when their spotter plane crashed as they surveyed the fire area.

Source: VTD

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

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Tuesday, December 4, 2007