2025 WOR: Fire Season 2015 – Opening Remarks

Letter to Leadership | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7

This Week of Remembrance (WOR) reflects on firefighters who have died in the line of duty during the 2015 fire season. WOR is a time for honoring through remembrance and learning from unintended outcomes. While we look back on those lost 10 years ago, we also remember the Granite 19 who perished together on this day in 2013.

Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshot Crew (IHC) was entrapped by rapidly moving fire driven by powerful outflow winds when traveling through an unburned area towards a designated safety zone on the Yarnell Hill Fire. Communication was lost for a duration of time while they were on the hill before their escape route was cut off. Granite Mountain had minutes to improve a deployment site before the fire overran them in deployed shelters. 19 perished together and one crewmember serving as lookout survived.

Gone, but never forgotten. We will always remember.

poster of the nineteen fallen firefighters.

Fire Season – 2015

Nationally, 68,151 wildfires were reported (93% of the 10-year average), burning 10,125,149 acres (145% of the 10-year average), breaking the earlier record for total acres burned. It was the worst fire season in history since the 1960s and the first time that 10 million acres burned had been recorded. The season was preceded by a dry winter and followed by higher temperatures. It was a year marked with intense drought that contributed to the increase in fire activity. The year appears to have preempted an overall and continued increase to year-round fire seasons. The wildland fire community lost 13 firefighters during the 2015 season.

This Week of Remembrance, we honor these fallen firefighters:

Clifford “Cliff” Sanders
(January 29, 2015 – KS)
Collapsed during IA response, stroke.
Jerold “Jerry” Bonner
(Mar 6, 2015 – CA)
Pilot, Alma Helitack Base, heart attack.
Brandon Ricks
(Mar 30, 2015 – MS)
DeSoto RX, helicopter crash.
Steve Cobb
(Mar 30, 2015 – MS)
DeSoto RX, helicopter crash.
Matthew C. Miller, Sr.
(April 7, 2015 – OR)
WCT, heart attack.
Raymond Araujo
(April 13, 2015 – CA)
PT, heart attack.
Ian Haxton
(June 6, 2015 – AZ)
WCT, collapsed.

Terry K. Sonner
(June 10, 2015 – ID)
PT, medical emergency.
David “Dave” Ruhl
(July 30, 2015 – CA)
Frog Fire entrapment.
Michael “Mikey” Hallenbeck
(Aug 8, 2015 – CA)
Sierra Fire, tree strike.
Richard Wheeler
(Aug 19, 2015 – WA)
Twisp River Fire, entrapment.
Andrew Zajac
(Aug 19, 2015 – WA)
Twisp River Fire, entrapment.
Tom Zbyszewski
(Aug 19, 2015 – WA)
Twisp River Fire, entrapment.

Reflections:

Our personal experiences influence how we respond to events. WOR can be a challenging time for all of us as we remember those lost. Give each other space and grace to process and do not be afraid to ask for help. Check in with your people. Remember, it is okay to not be okay.

Discussion:

Where were you/what were you doing when you heard the 19 had perished?
What does the WOR mean to you and what are some ways you reflect?
How do the tragedies you have experienced or learned about affect you and continue to affect you?

References:

Annual Report – 2015

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6MFS Suggestion Form

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Last Modified / Reviewed: 2025-10-24

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Date: March 6, 2026
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Please contact: Incident Operations Subcommittee

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Date: March 6, 2026
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NWCG 50 Year Anniversary Video

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Date: March 6, 2026
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NWCG is pleased to announce the new S-131, Firefighter Type 1 course is now available on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal (WFLP). Developed through the Incident Performance and Training Modernization (IPTM) effort, this course is a performance-based instructor-led training (ILT) that focuses on the application of situational awareness and decision making, building on the knowledge and concepts introduced in previous required courses. Using a threaded fictitious fire, each unit focuses on a performance-based activity in which students practice applying their decision-making and problem-solving skills.

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Date: March 4, 2026
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References:

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2025 WOR: Fire Season 2015 – Opening Remarks

Letter to Leadership | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7

Fire Season – 2015