Monument Fire Entrapment 2000

In June of 2001, the National Park Service Regional Office performed an Oversight Review at Pecos National Historical Park. The possibility surfaced that there was an unreported entrapment of a wildland firefighter during initial attack suppression operations on the Monument Fire on May 15, 2000. The Intermountain Regional Director instructed the Branch of Fire and Aviation to conduct a preliminary review of this alleged entrapment to determine if an investigation was warranted. The team’s preliminary review concluded that a National Park Service firefighter was entrapped on the Monument fire on May 15. Following this determination, an Entrapment Investigation Team was ordered. The Delegation of Authority was issued on July 19, 2001. The team was tasked to perform an entrapment investigation according to the guidelines set forth by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group  and the National Park Service in Reference Manual RM­18.

Initial Attack, Entrapment