It is July 9, 2001, and a camper near the Thirtymile Trailhead in Washington State’s Okanogan National Forest in the United States has left a campfire unattended. The previous winter was one of the driest in decades and the summer temperature has been near record highs. Later in the evening, a passing plane reports smoke.
The next morning, a fire crew that has spent the night mobilising to fight a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) wildfire nearby is redirected to the emerging Thirtymile Fire. Most of the crew is young and inexperienced – for many it is their first fire season with the service. This group is in fact an aggregate of two undersized crews, half of whom have never worked with the crew boss, and there is a lack of cohesion in the unit.
