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| (med | States       |           | ashington | Independence Ave.    |
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| 1.jp | of           |           |           | P.O. Box 96090       |
| eg){ |              |           |           |                      |
| widt | Agriculture  |           |           | Washington, DC       |
| h="0 |              |           |           | 20090-6090           |
| .583 |              |           |           |                      |
| 3333 |              |           |           |                      |
| 3333 |              |           |           |                      |
| 3333 |              |           |           |                      |
| 4in" |              |           |           |                      |
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| ="0. |              |           |           |                      |
| 3888 |              |           |           |                      |
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| in"} |              |           |           |                      |
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+-----------------------------------------------+----------------------+
| File code: 6730                               | Date: July 27, 2003  |
+-----------------------------------------------+----------------------+
| Route to:                                     |                      |
+-----------------------------------------------+----------------------+
| Subject: Expanded (72-Hour) Briefing          |                      |
|                                               |                      |
| North Fork Ranger District, Salmon Challis    |                      |
| National Forest                               |                      |
|                                               |                      |
| July 22, 2003                                 |                      |
+-----------------------------------------------+----------------------+
| To: Thomas J. Mills, Designated Safety and    |                      |
| Health Official                               |                      |
+-----------------------------------------------+----------------------+

**THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS PRELIMINARY AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE**

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Name of injured or deceased (if the next of kin have been notified):  |
| Jeff Allen and Shane Heath                                            |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                                                                       |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Narrative:                                                            |
|                                                                       |
| The Cramer Fire was first reported by a Salmon-Challis National       |
| Forest fire lookout on Sunday afternoon, July 20, 2003. The fire was  |
| reconned by aircraft shortly after detection and reported as three    |
| acres, burning midslope in Ponderosa pine and grass. The fire was     |
| located on the Salmon River, near Cramer Creek, at an elevation of    |
| 4000-5000 feet. Engines, helitack, air attack, airtankers, and a      |
| heavy helicopter were dispatched to the fire. By nightfall, the fire  |
| had grown to 10 acres.                                                |
|                                                                       |
| A Type 3 IC, a Type II hand crew, one Type I helicopter and two Type  |
| III helicopters and an airtanker were assigned to the Cramer Fire on  |
| Monday, July 21, 2003. Suppression efforts were hampered by steep     |
| terrain and rolling debris. By the end of the day the fire had grown  |
| to approximately 220 acres.                                           |
|                                                                       |
| On the morning of Tuesday, July 22, two helicopter rappellers from    |
| the Indianola helirappell crew, Jeff Allen and Shane Heath, rappelled |
| onto a ridgeline above the fire to cut a helispot. Three Type II hand |
| crews were flown into a helispot and initiated suppression action at  |
| the bottom of the fire. An Air Attack Group Supervisor, Lead Plane,   |
| two airtankers and three helicopters continued to work the fire.      |
|                                                                       |
| By midafternoon the handcrews that had been flown into the fire were  |
| pulled off the fireline due to increased fire intensity at the lower  |
| helispot. The crews walked to the Cache Bar boat ramp. Shortly        |
| thereafter, the rappellers called for a helicopter to pick them up,   |
| saying that it was becoming very smoky. A helicopter was launched to  |
| retrieve the two rappellers but was unable to land due to extremely   |
| poor visibility.                                                      |
|                                                                       |
| Radio contact with the rappellers was lost. Both helicopters assigned |
| to the fire searched for Jeff Allen and Shane Heath. Later in the     |
| day, two more rappellers, rappelled into the fire area to search on   |
| foot for the two missing crew members. While they were making their   |
| way towards the helispot Jeff Allen and Shane Heath had been working  |
| on, personnel on the other helicopter spotted the missing men and     |
| guided the rappellers to the scene.                                   |
|                                                                       |
| Thomas J. Mills, Designated Safety and Health Official 2              |
|                                                                       |
| Weather conditions on the Cramer Fire were hot and dry, with          |
| afternoon high temperatures in the 90\'s and minimum relative         |
| humidity in the teens to low 20\'s. No major frontal systems were in  |
| the area, skies were clear, and winds were generally in the 10-15 mph |
| range.                                                                |
|                                                                       |
| The bodies of Jeff Allen and Shane Heath were found and personnel     |
| secured the site. Neither firefighter was in a fire shelter. Jeff     |
| Allen was a 24-year old native of Salmon, Idaho, and a 4-year member  |
| of the Indianola helitack crew. Shane Heath, a 22-year old from       |
| Melba, Idaho, was in his second year on the Indianola crew. Services  |
| for Jeff Allen took place in Salmon, Idaho on Saturday July 26, 2003. |
| Services for Shane Heath are scheduled for Monday, July 28, 2003 in   |
| Nampa, Idaho.                                                         |
|                                                                       |
| LINDA DONOGHUE                                                        |
|                                                                       |
| Team Leader                                                           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+

cc:

Safety Manager (at the level authorizing the investigation)

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| ![](media/image2.j                | # Carin                           |
| peg){width="0.4263888888888889in" | g for the Land and Serving People |
| height="0.4270833333333333in"}    |                                   |
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