Tallahassee, Florida - Florida is mourning the loss of two veteran firefighters killed when a wildfire suddenly changed direction and flashed over them.
Fifty-two-year old Brett Fulton and 31-year-old Josh Burch were operating bulldozers at the front lines of the Blue Ribbon Fire in Hamilton County on Monday when they were caught in, what fire officials call, a "burn over."
The fire was relatively small, only 12 acres, but the weather conditions changed quickly and created a firestorm.
Two other firefighters, Robert Marvin and Steve Carpenter, were injured when they ran into the flames to try to rescue their colleagues but the heat and smoke were too bad.
Marvin and Carpenter suffered smoke inhalation and were treated at the hospital. Wildfires Incident Commander Jim Karels calls their actions heroic.
Karels says the deaths of Fulton and Burch highlight the critical dangers that firefighters face when they battle wildfires.
"They don't do it for the money. They love the job. They do it to serve the citizens and it's a tough day for all of us."
Karels says Fulton and Burch were digging a fire line to keep the flames from spreading at the time of the burn over.
"Their tactics are to flag the fire to catch it and essentially contain it by removing the fuel, the vegetation through fire plows and through bladed lines and fire plowed lines.
"Most likely in this situation the fire blew up and the winds shifted, whether it was sea breeze, whatever it might be, I can't speculate and the fire came over the top of them."
The Blue Ribbon Fire started on June 16th as a result of lightning. It was contained, but then it flared up again on Monday.
Karels says Fulton and Burch were in communication with aircraft observing two wildfires in the area.
Fulton and Burch had both been firefighters for 10 years with the Division of Forestry. Fulton is survived by his wife and two grown children, while Burch is survived by a wife and two young sons.
The last firefighter death from a wildfire in Florida happened in 1985.
Florida is having one of its worst wildfire seasons. More than 1,500 wildfires have burned about 200,000 acres across the state since May 1st.
Dave Heller
You Might Be Interested In