Research Catalog

Title

The Thirtymile fire : a chronicle of bravery and betrayal / John N. Maclean.

Author

Maclean, John N.

Publication

New York : Henry Holt, 2007.

Supplementary Content

• Contributor biographical information
• Publisher description

Items in the Library & Off-site

Holdings

Details

Description

x, 241 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps; 25 cm

Summary

"The Thirtymile Fire in the North Cascade Range near the Canadian border of Washington began as a simple mop-up operation; in a few hours, a series of catastrophic errors led to the entrapment and deaths of four members of the fire crew - two teenage girls and two young men. Each had brought order and meaning to their lives by joining the fire world. Then the very flames they pursued turned on them, extinguishing their lives. When the victims were blamed for their own deaths, the charge brought a storm of controversy that undermined the firefighting community." "Continuing a tradition established by his previous books, and by his father Norman's Young Men and Fire, John Maclean re-creates the harrowing few minutes when the rogue wildfire burst out of a remote canyon to trap the surprised firefighters. Maclean's unflinching analysis exposes the details of the fire's unexpected violence - which is matched by the passions released by the official verdict of the blaze. Weaving together the astonishing stories told by the fire's witnesses and, later, the victims' family members and the response to the official reports, Maclean creates a telling narrative of a catastrophe that continues to divide a community. He also offers new information that could help to prevent such tragedies in the future." "Even though the Thirtymile Fire is changing the way fire is fought, the author believes the fire world has been slow to adopt flexible field-tested procedures over traditional firefighting rules and regulations. "Fire has a life of its own beyond scientific absolutes," Maclean writes. It's deadly and unpredictable. The biggest unsolved mystery of the Thirtymile Fire concerns its erratic behavior. Why did it take that tragic left hook, entrapping four youths on that fateful July day? It's a question that will haunt readers of this dramatic true story."--BOOK JACKET.

Subjects

• Wildfire fighters > North Cascades (B.C. and Wash.)
• Wildfires > Washington (State) > Prevention and control
• Wildfire fighters > Washington (State)
• Wildfires > North Cascades (B.C. and Wash.) > Prevention and control

Note

• Includes index.
• "A John Macrae book."

ISBN

• 9780805075786
• 080507578X

LCCN

2006045846

OCLC

• OCM70208085
• 70208085
• SCSB-5343450

Owning Institutions

Columbia University Libraries