California fisherman severely injured in Colorado wildfire

Thursday, April 17, 2008

California fisherman severely injured in Colorado wildfire

The man who was injured was identified only as Larry, a retired California police officer

News article:
Fishermen Escape Wildfire, One Severely Burned

CARBONDALE, Colo. (CBS4) ― A wildfire this week near Carbondale trapped three fishermen from California Tuesday and severely burned one of them.

The man who was injured was identified only as Larry, a retired police officer, by friends.

The three were fishing in the area at The Ranch at Roaring Fork when the fire started.

"The fire was clear over there and truck was right over there," Chuck Hiatt said.

The flames quickly moved closer and the men were surrounded.

"Every place I stepped there was a fire," Hiatt said.

He decided it was time to go but then heard Larry yelling for help.

"Those trees right there just exploded and I could see his hands and the top of his head were burned," Hiatt said. "I just said, 'come on, we've got to get out of here.'"

Hiatt pulled Larry out of the river where he had nearly given up.

"We all were lucky," Hiatt said.

Larry had surgery Wednesday and was recovering in a hospital.

Source article: at CBS4 Denver - Link

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****REMINDER**** Every fire has the ability to be catastrophic. The wildland fire management environment has profoundly changed. Growing numbers of communities, across the nation, are experiencing longer fire seasons; more frequent, bigger, and more severe, fires are a real threat. Be careful with all campfires and equipment.

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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.

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Thursday, April 17, 2008