Loop Fire

Loop Fire. El Cariso Park. , This park and memorial stand as a tribute to the young men who lost their lives on the Loop Fire, to those who survived, and to firefighters everywhere. , On November 1, 1966, the El Cariso Hot Shots, a USDA Forest Service Interregional Wildland Firefighting Crew working on the Loop Fire were trapped by flames in a steep canyon on a hillside directly in front of you. , The crew was constructing fireline downhill into a chimney canyon and were within 200 feet of completing their assignment when a sudden shift of winds caused a spot fire directly below where they were working. Within seconds, flames raced uphill, engulfing the firefighters in temperatures estimated to reach 2500 degree F. The fire flashed through the 2,200 foot chimney canyon in less than one minute, catching the crew while they attempted to reach their safety zones. , Ten members of the elite firefighting crew, the El Cariso Hot Shots, perished on the Loop Fire that day. Another two members succumbed from injuries in the following days. Most of those who survived were critically burned and remained hospitalized for some time. In the last 30 years, lessons learned from the Loop Fire tragedy have been shared with firefighters around the world, saving many lives. , Dedicated November 1, 1996 , , Forever Honored , Those Who Lost Their Lives , Raymond Chee - Age 23 . James Moreland - Age 22 . Michael White - Age 20 . John Figlo - Age 18 . William Waller - Age 21 . Joel Hill - Age 19 . Steven White - Age 18 . Carl Shilcutt - Age 26 . John Verdugo - Age 19 . Daniel Moore - Age 21 . Kenneth Barnhill - Age 19 . Fredrick Danner - Age 18 , , Never Forgotten , Survivors , Gordon King . Warren Burchett . John Moore . Richard Leak . Robert Chounard . Patrick Chase . Stephen Bowman . Jerry Smith . Glenn Spady . Joseph Smalls . Edward Cosgrove . Rodney Seewald . Thomas Rother . William Parshall . Charles Gibson . Franklin Keesling . Jerry Gunter . William Davidson . Thomas Sullivan