Lodd- Utah Wildfire

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Investigation Report Available

The report in it's entirety can be viewed at:

http://www.nifc.gov/ARB_Factual_Report.pdf

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Update

Report: Firefighter ignored advice

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A firefighter killed in a central Utah
wildfire might have survived if he'd made different choices, a
report analyzing the incident says.
The report by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest
Service says 33-year-old Spencer Koyle ignored advice from
colleagues and didn't follow safety procedures that might have
helped him escape the blaze.
Koyle died in August conducting fire reconnaissance in a burning
canyon. He was attempting to seek refuge in a shelter when the fire
overtook him.
The report says Koyle's intentions were noble, but fire
officials had strongly urged him NOT to go. It also says Koyle made
several mistakes.
The fire started with a lightning strike August 15th. It was
contained August 30th after burning 22 square miles.
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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com

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Rest in peace!

HOLDEN, Utah (AP) - Spencer Koyle's body was transported aboard
a fire truck to his final resting place. Koyle was buried today in
central Utah, six days after dying in the Devil's Den wildfire.
More than a thousand people were in the town of Holden to honor
Koyle. Fire trucks from Utah and beyond flashed their lights as his
casket was taken to the local cemetery.
Koyle was 33 years old, married, and the father of three
children. He was scouting the Devil's Den fire last week when it
trapped him in Millard County, 130 miles south of Salt Lake City.

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August 21st

Report says firefighter was killed while scouting blaze
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Firefighter Spencer Stanley Koyle was
scouting the Devil's Den wildfire when the winds shifted and he was
overtaken by the blaze and killed, according to investigators'
preliminary report.
Koyle, 33, of Holden was among 40 firefighters sent last
Thursday to the 250-acre blaze in the Fishlake National Forest east
of Delta, according to the report by investigators for the Forest
Service and Bureau of Land Management.
The firefighters and equipment were airlifted to a safety zone
that morning, the report released Monday said.
As assignments were being made, Koyle left the helispot to scout
the bush fire.
About 1:50 p.m., the wind and fire conditions changed quickly.
"Koyle tried to return to the safety zone but was overtaken by
rapidly advancing flames," investigators Joel D. Holtrop of the
Forest Service and Gust C. Panos of the BLM said.
They said Koyle deployed his shelter, but did not survive.
Millard County Sheriff Robert Dekker said Friday that Koyle
"had called in and said he was in trouble."
The other firefighters were evacuated.
It was the first death this year of a federal firefighter while
battling a blaze, according to the National Interagency Fire
Center.
Koyle began fighting fires part-time in 1991. He graduated from
Utah State University and worked his way up to fire-operations
specialist for the BLM, supervising 30 firefighters in two federal
agencies.
Koyle was married with three children.

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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Rest in Peace brother!

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A firefighter who died on the Devil's Den
blaze in Fishlake National Forest was trapped as shifting winds
suddenly fueled a furious wildfire, the Millard County sheriff said
Friday.
"It was terrible and fast, and the fire just erupted," Sheriff
Robert Dekker said. "They called for the teams to evacuate and all
were able to except for him."
Spencer Koyle, 33, died Thursday while fighting a 250-acre
wildfire, about 130 miles south of Salt Lake City.
Dekker, who talked to other firefighters after the tragedy, said
Koyle "had called in and said he was in trouble."
It was the first death this year of a federal firefighter while
battling a blaze, according to the National Interagency Fire
Center.
Koyle and others were trying to keep the fire from spreading
into Oak City.
"It's sagebrush, pinion pine, some tall grass, rocky. Just
difficult for firefighters to be in," the sheriff said.
Fresh out of Fillmore High School, Koyle began fighting fires
part-time in 1991. He graduated from Utah State University and
worked his way up to fire-operations specialist for the U.S. Bureau
of Land Management, supervising 30 firefighters in two federal
agencies.
Koyle enjoyed the camaraderie as well as the challenge of what
he might find in the canyons and brush of central Utah, a friend
said.
"There's a rush when you're dealing with something that Mother
Nature throws at you," said Russ Ivie, who works on prescribed
fires for the U.S. Forest Service.
"The satisfaction of protecting homes and looking out for
safety of other firefighters - none of us are in this for the
money," Ivie said Friday from Richfield.
He described Koyle as "our most experienced firefighter. It's
been a shock to our little fire community."
The cause of Koyle's death was not immediately known. An autopsy
was planned.
Investigators were traveling to the area Friday to talk to
witnesses, said Davida Carnahan, a Forest Service spokeswoman.
"All I can say is we lost radio contact with him," she said.
"The fire was burning in very rugged and steep terrain. Canyons
are always a cause for concern."
Firefighters were immediately pulled off the wildfire and the
site was temporarily turned over to Utah authorities.
"It was too traumatic," Carnahan said.
The fire began after a lightning strike Tuesday above Oak City.
Koyle lived in Holden, also in Millard County, and was married with
three children.
"Spencer was a born leader, and I'm not saying that because
he's gone," Ivie said. "Every person who worked under him
respected him."
On the Net: http://www.blm.gov/nhp/index.htm

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RICHFIELD, Utah (AP) - A firefighter died Thursday afternoon
while battling a 250-acre fire in a rugged canyon above Oak City.
The firefighter's identity and the cause of his death have not
been released.
The death was reported to the Millard County sheriff's office
about 2:25 p.m.
The man from the Richfield Interagency Fire Organization, said
U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman
Davida Carnahan.
The firefighter was one of 40 crew members battling the Devil's
Den fire, which was started by lightning just before midnight
Tuesday in the Canyon Mountains and was burning pinon, juniper and
brush,
The other firefighters were pulled off the mountain after the
death, Carnahan said.
Sheriff Robert Dekker said investigators still were at the scene
late Thursday and the body was still on the mountain.
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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com