MAFFS: WHITE DRAW FIRE LODD VICTIMS ID RELEASED

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

MAFFS: WHITE DRAW FIRE LODD VICTIMS ID RELEASED

NC Guard Identifies Airmen Killed in C-130 Crash

"Words can't express how much we feel the loss of these airmen,"

WASHINGTON, July 3, 2012 - North Carolina Air National Guard officials today released the names of four crew members killed when their C-130 cargo plane equipped with the Modular Airborne Fire-Fighting System crashed July 1 as they fought South Dakota's White Draw Fire.

Two other crew members were seriously injured and remain hospitalized, and their names will not be released, officials said.
"Words can't express how much we feel the loss of these airmen," . "Our prayers are with their families, as well as our injured brothers as they recover." - said Air Force Brig. Gen. Tony McMillan, commander of the 145th Airlift Wing

Air Force Lt. Col. Paul Mikael
Air Force Maj. Joseph McCormick
Air Force Maj. Ryan David
Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Robert Cannon died in the crash.

An investigation is under way to determine the cause of the crash.

The crew and its aircraft, along with two other 145th Airlift Wing C-130s and three dozen airmen had flown from Charlotte, N.C., to Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colo., June 30 to assist wildfire fighting efforts in the Rocky Mountain region.

At a news conference at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, today, where the 145th Airlift Wing is based, the North Carolina Air National Guard's state public affairs officer said the wing's two remaining MAFFS-equipped C-130 aircraft are scheduled to return home.

"The MAFFS operations are ongoing," "Our aircraft are scheduled to come back home. It's a small community that does the MAFFS mission, a community within the Air Guard community, so these people all knew each other very well, and they're going through a tough time." - Air Force Lt. Col. Robert Carver said.

Carver praised the service of the fallen airmen and noted their names would be added to a memorial at the unit's headquarters.

"Our people come here out of a sense of patriotism and out of a sense of wanting to be public servants," Carver said. "They enjoy the excitement of doing this kind of work. They were [ready] to go on Saturday ... when they left."

"You can't say enough about people who are willing to go in harm's way when we need it as Americans," he said.

Source: DOD - By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
American Forces Press Service

CCalifornia Fire News 2012

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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).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Tuesday, July 3, 2012