Of the nine people killed in the northern California helicopter crash last week, seven were firefighters in their teens and twenties and two were pilots in their 50s and 60s. When I look at the photos of the firefighters — most of them under 25 years old — with their ironic smiles and (to this ex-long-haired-hippie’s eyes) goofy hairstyles, I can’t help but wonder whether we really needed to be fighting this and other northern California fires.
Iron Complex Fire on the Trinity River.
All photos by J. Michael Johnson, NPS.
I am not the only one who wonders. Former firefighter Timothy Ingalsbee points out that this particular fire, known as the Iron Complex, was “far from any community or infrastructure.” There was no social or environmental benefit, he believes, to justify spending $55 million (so far) and risking firefighters’ lives trying to suppress this particular fire.
