Inspection Detail

Inspection: 315796805 - Bureau Of Indian Affairs-Fort Apache Fire Mgmt Cen

Inspection Information - Office: Phoenix Area Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 12:00 noon, on July 23, 2011, Employee #1 and the Show Low Dispatch Unit, a company of firefighters were dispatched to fight a diamond fire caused by lightning. The location of the fire was confirmed by a helicopter spotter, north of the Black River on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, approximately 2.5 miles northeast of the Ten of Diamonds Ranch in Arizona. The Fort Apache helitack and the Fort Apache Hotshots were dispatched as initial attack resources, and were flown to a helispot located on a ridge near the fire start. The Terrain in the area was steep and rocky with a dense woodlands fuel type. Following the completion of a hand line around the 35 acre fire, the resources hiked back up to the heliport, as resources returned to the helispot, the Incident Commander determined that one firefighter was not accounted for, and initiated a search to locate the missing firefighter. The firefighter was in possession of a handheld radio, and all attempts to contact him throughout the evening were not successful. After several sweeps of the area, law enforcement from local, county and state agencies were requested to assist with the search efforts. The Search efforts continued throughout the night, the missing firefighter was found deceased.

Keywords: FIREFIGHTER, ROCK, FIRE, HELICOPTER