Texas Volunteer Firefighter Dies Battling Lightning-Sparked Blaze in Mendocino Nat'l Forest
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- A volunteer fire department in Cresson Texas near Fort Worth said Monday one of its firefighters died battling West Coast wildfire and, later, the Forest Service said one firefighter was killed and another injured battling a Northern California blaze.
The deceased firefighter was identified by the Cresson department as a female who had volunteered to work at a western wildfire but a U.S. Forest Service representative confirmed to CBS that one person was killed and another injured Monday while battling the August Complex fire which has burned more than 236,000 acres in the Mendocino National Forest since Aug. 17.
Neither was identified but the Forest Service said the injured firefighter was receiving medical attention.
Like three other lightning-caused wildfire "complexes" currently active in the Bay Area, the August Complex is the naming convention used to collectively refer to several fires: the Hull fire, Doe Fire, Glade fire and Tatham fire. KPIX has not learned which of those fires was the one that claimed the Texas firefighter's life.
As of Monday the August Complex was 20 percent contained.
According to the Cresson volunteer department Facebook page, the deceased firefighter had recently posted a photo to social media showing the terrain where she had been working.
CRESSON FIRE DEPT FACEBOOK POST
"A few weeks ago we told everyone that some of our firefighters were helping with wildfires in the western US. One of them updated her Facebook profile picture yesterday to show the terrain where she was working. A couple of hours ago we learned that today she lost her life on the fireground. Our department is numbed by the news and we are hurting."
