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El Dorado Fire Fatality 2020

  • Incident Information:

    Attachment Size
    El Dorado Fire Entrapment Learning Review.pdf (2.3 MB) 2.3 MB
    El Dorado Fire Entrapment Organizational Learning Report.pdf (240.31 KB) 240.31 KB
    El Dorado Fire Entrapment PPE Report.pdf (489.88 KB) 489.88 KB
    USFA_Notification_Morton.pdf
    El Dorado Fire 72_hour_report.pdf
    fa446411-a510-4472-40f6-f61813900c38_file

  • Location:

    California

  • Date:

    09/17/2020

  • Incident Type:

    Entrapment

  • Description:

    The El Dorado Fire started in San Bernardino County, California at the lower elevations of the San Bernardino Mountains on September 5, 2020. Within one operational period, the fire burned through the El Dorado Ranch Park in San Bernardino County and onto the San Bernardino National Forest. The plan for September 17, 2020, on the El Dorado Fire included a burnout in Division L to protect the town of Angelus Oaks. Once the community of Angelus Oaks was secured, another burnout operation in Division O would be necessary to tie the El Dorado Fire into an older fire scar (the Lake Fire, 2015). Fire behavior began to pick up on the afternoon of September 17, triggering the resources in Division O to conduct their burnout earlier than planned. A group from Big Bear Hotshots moved to Division O to assist with the firing operation. Squad Leader Charlie Morton was in the area of the firing operation to assess the situation, observing multiple spot fires. Soon afterward he was entrapped by a sudden increase in fire behavior. After several hours of searching, Charlie Morton was found deceased near a dozer line.

    Counter Rotating Vortex Pairs Video: https://youtu.be/77bflBx8maY

    Fire Behavior, Extended Attack, Fatality, Hand Crews

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