Federal fire managers ordered safety stand-downs Monday morning and gave hundreds of wildland firefighters the option of packing up and going home after 19 elite crew members were killed in Arizona.
“The immediate impact of that fire is on re-focusing everybody throughout the fire community on safety,” said National Interagency Fire Center spokesman Randy Eardley. “They will talk about it, reflect on it and refocus their efforts on safety.”
A journalist and lawyer, Bruce Finley has investigated local, national and international issues with on-site reporting in more than 40 countries. In his position as a staff writer for the Denver Post, he is focusing on environment-related news including water challenges, the oil and gas boom and wildfire.
