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At
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Service Above Self |
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Sayre Fire: Hallowed Ground For Firefighters
LA Fire Department
by Brian Humphrey
LAFD Spokesman
Dear Friend of the LAFD,
Having been away from Los Angeles this week and mourning the loss of a friend, mentor and legendary firefighter - it was with compounded sadness that I joined you in watching our beloved City ablaze.
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Though off-duty and unable to respond from afar, my personal cellphone rang through the night with calls from reporters seeking "the story". With the initial Incident Command Post for the Sayre Fire listed as El Cariso Park, I politely guided journalists to the site by instinct, asking them but one favor: :
"Please, tell the story behind the name of El Cariso Park"
With the flames too tempting a focus, nary a reporter would ask the question. A question which when answered, would put both meaning and perspective into the Herculean effort of firefighters working the Sayre Wildland Fire.
For 'El Cariso' was not merely chosen as a nice sounding name for the 79-acre park, but rather a distinct honor bestowed upon hallowed ground to honor the memory of twelve wildland firefighters, members of the El Cariso Hotshots. Ten would die on the mountain and two would later succumb, in a November 1, 1966 wildfire that scorched
the same area of the western San Gabriel Mountains that burned this week.
As the Sayre fire moved west along the foothills this weekend, fanned - or should I say blasted by near-hurricane force Santa Ana Winds, there seemed genuine surprise by reporters that a fire could move so quickly - or that there could be a need to "evacuate a hospital" while "fires burned in two counties".
The Los Angeles Times headlines and newspaper photos from 1966, tell a tragic story that will always be worth sharing. Not merely because Angelenos have forgotten, but because the blaze, dubbed 'The Loop Fire', has had monumental impact on wildland fire leadership in Los Angeles, across our nation and around the globe. The lessons taught us by the El Cariso Hotshots are ingrained in every wildland firefighter you meet, and the site of their last stand remains hallowed ground.
The fact that 1700 Los Angeles residents - many of them vulnerable, were safely evacuated during an equally fierce fire this weekend in the shadows of where the Hotshots laid down their lives 42 years earlier, speaks volumes of the lessons learned and the commitment they inspired.
Through improved fireground procedures, event intelligence, radio communications, protective clothing and safety equipment, the El Cariso Hotshots have brought benefit to every wildfire we battle.
In the early 1970's, inspired by the Loop Fire and other blazes, Southern California firefighters enhanced our regional management of emergencies through FIRESCOPE and an Incident Command System now used by emergency responders across the globe.
In the four decades since, the Loop Fire has served as a catalyst for an enhanced framework for handling disaster, and for helping our nation adopt both a National Incident Management System and a manner by which urban areas like Los Angeles can remain prepared.
It is this well-focused system - actively supported by the residents of Los Angeles, that allows LAFD and LAPD responders to work seamlessly with allied agencies in mitigating an epic conflagration like the Sayre fire.
Though the Sayre Fire soon proved too large to be managed from El Cariso Park - and the media moved on to more compelling stories, I wanted to make sure you knew the historical significance of our initial Command Post location, and what happened on that day in November 1966.
You also should know that following the full containment of this most recent blaze, members of the Los Angeles Fire Department will respectfully gather at the Loop Fire Memorial in El Cariso Park, to remember and recommit themselves to the important lessons shared unblinkingly, but at immense cost by twelve gallant men.
I hope you will join us.
NOTE: Following the full containment of the Sayre Wildland Fire, I will post details on the LAFD Blog regarding the date, time and location for this simple public ceremony to which you all are most welcome. I look forward to seeing some of you there.
Respectfully Yours in (Friendship), Safety and Service,
Brian Humphrey
Firefighter / Specialist
Public Service Officer
Los Angeles Fire Department
E-Mail: beh9593@lafd.lacity.org
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