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Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments

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Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments United States Department of Agriculture Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments Learning Review Narrative Fall 2016 Contents Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments ................................................................................................. 2 Foreword ..................................................................................................................................... 2 Event Narrative ............................................................................................................................ 3 About this Document ........................................................................................................................... 3 Conditions on the Ground .................................................................................................................... 3 Incident Complexity ............................................................................................................................. 8 1220-1245 – Resources Ordered .......................................................................................................... 8 1245-1315 – Resources Arrive ........................................................................................................... 10 1315-1345 –– Engaging the Fire ......................................................................................................... 14 1345–1400 -- Engaging the Fire ......................................................................................................... 17 1400–1430 .......................................................................................................................................... 18 Moving Engines Up Woods Canyon Road .......................................................................................... 21 1430-1515 -- The Wind Shifts ............................................................................................................. 22 RTO! RTO! -- Reverse Tool Order! ...................................................................................................... 26 Incidents within the Incident ............................................................................................................. 31 Entrapment at House #3 .................................................................................................................... 32 The Search for Engine 642 and the Dozer Group ............................................................................... 36 1515-1530 –- Search and Rescue ....................................................................................................... 37 1530-1630 -- Search for Engine 642 ................................................................................................... 37 1630 -- End of Shift ............................................................................................................................. 37 Team Members .......................................................................................................................... 39 Appendices .................................................................................................................................................. 40 Appendix A – Maps .................................................................................................................... 40 Appendix B – Glossary of Acronyms .......................................................................................... 43 List of fictitious names and their roles ............................................................................................... 43 List of acronyms ................................................................................................................................. 43 Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments Learning Review Narrative Page 1 of 44 Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments Foreword On August 19, 2015, USDA Forest Service firefighters Richard Wheeler, Andrew Zajac, and Tom Zbyszewski perished while engaged in initial attack on the Twisp River Fire. A fourth member of the crew was critically injured with severe burns. In addition, a heavy equipment boss and a heavy equipment boss trainee from the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and a contract dozer operator were entrapped but survived with minor injuries. Numerous other fire personnel were also entrapped but survived without injuries. The Twisp River Fire was reported on August 19 at 1223 Pacific Daylight Time. The fire started when tree branches struck a nearby powerline. By 0600 hours on August 20, it was reported to be 7,231 acres and had reached the outskirts of Twisp, Washington. The fire’s final reported acreage on August 26 was 11,922 acres. This narrative describes the events that took place during the initial attack of this incident. The intent of this report is to capture—as accurately as we can—what happened on the Twisp River Fire so that we can learn how to prevent fatality fires in the future. Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments Learning Review Narrative Page 2 of 44 Event Narrative About this Document This story is told from multiple perspectives, alternating between flanks and viewpoints and along a timeline. With the exception of the deceased firefighters, the names and resource identifiers in this narrative have been altered to protect the privacy of the individuals involved. Please be aware that there are small discrepancies in some of the time stamps in this document due to a number of reasons, including short delays in posting information at dispatch centers, recollections from the participants, and differences in watch or clock settings. All time references in this document are reported in Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) using Military Time format. Conditions on the Ground The Twisp River Fire started along the Twisp River Road approximately five miles west of Twisp, Washington. The elevation at this location is 2,006 feet above sea level. The Twisp River drainage is a major west-to-east drainage running from the Cascade Crest out into the Methow Valley. The fire area is primarily on a south-southwest aspect with slope percent ranging from flat along the Twisp River to in excess of 35 percent. The area is dissected by three north-south running drainages: Woods Canyon in the immediate fire area; Myer Creek, which was approximately 0.3 mile to the west; and Elbow Coulee—the largest—which was approximately 0.6 mile to the east of the Twisp River Fire location. Surface fuels in the fire area were comprised of an understory of four- to six-foot tall bitterbrush and serviceberry on the lower portions of slopes and in the drainages. Associated herbs and grasses of arrowleaf balsam root, Idaho fescue, and bunchgrasses were observed in the area as well as some cheatgrass. The overstory tree species consisted of ponderosa pine with some Douglas-fir on favorable mesic sites, especially in Woods Canyon proper. Vegetation on the upper slopes and ridges consisted primarily of the grasses listed above, with isolated groups of ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir. Aspen, willow, and cottonwood were also present in the drainage bottoms along Twisp River Road and in Woods Canyon. The area was classified as being in “extreme drought.” The 2014/15 winter snowpack was 22 percent of normal levels in the Cascade Range The area was in west of the Methow Valley in April 2015 and was snow-free by May extreme drought. 2015. Between January and August, monthly precipitation totals in the area were 0.19 inches to 0.73 inches below normal for the year, with the exception of May, which was 0.46 inches above the historical average for the month. For the summer period (June-August), average temperatures in the area were the warmest on record (1895-2015). Fuel Conditions The combined effects of below-average snow pack, limited precipitation, and above-average temperatures negatively affected the entire fuel complex. All fuel types and size classes were available to burn during the fire. While local information on live fuel and dead fuel status were Twisp River Fire Fatalities and Entrapments Learning Review Narrative Page 3 of 44 unavailable, field inspections adjacent to the fire area suggest that the live herbaceous fuel component was fully cured and available. National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS) dead fuel moistures were calculated and evaluated for seasonal trends. Compared to 2014, both 100-hour and 1,000-hour dead fuel moistures were low for early August 2015. The 100-hour dead fuel moistures had dipped down to all-time lows on August 2 (6 percent) but were trending upwards towards average for the time period. However, the 1,000-hour dead fuels were tracking at all-time lows for the August period at 8 percent. One-hour dead fuel moistures were at the historical average for the time of year at 3 percent. Under the fuel and weather conditions in the fire area on August 19, the calculated probability of ignition was greater than 85 percent. The energy release component (ERC) is related to the available energy released within the flaming front. Daily variations in ERC are due to changes in moisture content of the various live and dead fuels present. Since June, ERC values had been above average, and unlike 2014, had not received periodic rainfall to moderate their steady climb. While not at the all-time high for the first two weeks of August, ERC levels were above the 97th percentile and higher than the values recorded in 2014 for the same time period. Weather
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