Ashmead Firefighter Fall 2008

On July 3, 2008, at approximately 1147 hours, Firefighter 1 (FF1) , Squad Leader and member of the Roosevelt Interagency Hotshot Crew, was participating in wildfire suppression and mop-up duties on the Ash Mead Fire located in the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit. Crew member Firefighter 2 (FF2) was working to extinguish a burning stump located on a small ledge, measuring approximately three-feet wide by ten-feet long, ending in a twenty-foot vertical cliff. FF1 had a five-gallon backpack pump and began assisting FF2 in putting out the burning stump. FF1 either lost his grip or stumbled and lost his balance, falling approximately 20 feet--landing on his back on a pile of rocks at the base of the cliff. FF2 used FF1’s radio to call for medical assistance. Approximately five minutes later, the crew EMT arrived at the accident scene and began to assess and stabilize FF1. The decision was quickly made to evacuate FF1 via helicopter. Grand Junction Dispatch was notified. FF1, secured to a backboard and litter, was moved to a helicopter landing zone approximately one third of a mile away. FF1 was Care Flighted to St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction. He was treated for several minor injuries and released later that day.

Fall