Aspen Fire Dozer Entrapment 2013

On day 13 of the Aspen Fire, six dozers were working three miles west of the fire to pioneer an indirect contingency line down a narrow ridgeline. At approximately 1830, the lead dozer spotted smoke in the creek ravine below his vehicle and others soon communicated by radio the same observation. The dozer operator immediately turned around, picked up the dozer boss trainee who threw his tools and pack in the cab then jumped in. From first spotting the smoke, a handful of minutes was all the time it took for flames to reach underneath the dozer with the flank crossing the dozer line. The operator convinced the trainee that riding it out in the dozer was their best bet. Both escaped the fire with an estimated 30 seconds or less to spare according to witnesses.