Milepost 66 Ropes Incident 2012

On September 29, 2012 the Milepost 66 Fire was in its fourth operational period under a Type III Organization. Most of the containment objectives for the fire had been met with the exception of a portion of line located on the east edge above old Highway 30, a pioneer road now used for non-motorized recreational use. There was still the potential for the fire to escape east due to continuous fuels along this steep terrain. The local unit had developed a low-angel ropes program over the years to deal with the extremely steep terrain common on fires in the Columbia Gorge. With a piece of extremely steep terrain mopped up, a crew was descending to the highway via rope. A crewmember was just finishing his descent when he was hit by a rock. He was quickly treated by local medically trained personnel and transported to the hospital .