Tunnel No. 6 Fire Entrapment 1954

The Tunnel No. 6 Fire was ignited by mine workers with an acetylene torch at the Sierra Buttes Mine above Sierra City, California. Frank Burr, Richard Fierro, and Mel Grodzik were members of the Downieville Forestry Honor Camp fire crew assigned to fight the Tunnel No. 6 Fire. They were caught in a steep canyon high in the Sierra Buttes when a windshift caused the fire to escape its lines. Their crew totaled 32 firefighters; two other men with the three were able to escape to the top of the ridge and into the safety of an open area. 

Entrapment, Fatality, Fire Behavior