Saturday, March 30, 2019
I was a squad leader for the Mill Creek Hot Shots about 1975. Mike was a supervisor responsible for our crew. I remember being driven to a fire near Lake Elsinore where our helicopter had already been dispatched for water drops. When we arrived we learned that our helicopter had crashed ahead of the fire. A few hours later we learned that the pilot and his spotter had escaped both the crash and the fire.
Mike was assigned an overhead role in charge of all of the crews trying to contain the fire. He had what turned out to be the hottest section.
I started thinking about this event while reading Fire by Sebastian Junger and I realized that Mike probably saved my life and the lives of dozens of other young fire fighters that day. And he did it on three separate occasions.
First, the Hot Shots were cutting line to tie into a road to form a fuel-less barrier to the fire. There was no fire visible and the work was routine. At some point long before I was aware of any danger, Mike called us off the line, back to the road and ordered us to run down the road away from the fire. Minutes later the whole area was engulfed in flame.
We regrouped behind a caterpillar and cut a line three ‘dozer blades wide. Mike ordered the cat to cut a safety area which was an additional 12 blades wide which seemed excessive even after our recent escape. Then we set to work lighting backfires from the fire facing edge of the line creating additional fuel-less space between the forest we were trying to save and the main fire. Once Again Mike ordered us to evacuate back across the safety area. The flames from the wind driven main fire were suddenly laying down across the whole of the safety area. We were safe. Put out a few spot fires and that portion of the line held.
Finally, I was working as Mike’s aide away from the Hot Shots when he was asked to lead several crews who were attempting to save a pine surrounded home in the path of the fire. He had everybody deployed and it seemed to me we were making good progress building a hand line around the property. Mike was the first one to notice the super dry air and the sparks swirling around. He ordered an evacuation and guided thirty fir fighters to safety across the road. As we ran down the driveway to the road the forest around the house literally exploded in flames. The house was lost but thirty fir fighters including me were alive.
Sorry I didn’t get to say it when you were alive Mike, but Thanx. You saved my life.
Rest In Peace
