When Roxanne introduced herself to the firefighters at the station, she told them that her husband had been one of the 19 hotshots killed in the Yarnell fire. So on a Wednesday,she and Harry went to Costcoto buy fresh fruit. In part, for that very reason, each crew always has at least one member serving as a lookout, stationed where he can watch the fire's behavior and radio changes in conditions to the team. Ashcraft, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was honored to be a member of the Hotshot crew, and 'he just had a really sweet spirit about him,' Elise Smith, a Prescott, Arizona, resident, told The Deseret News of Salt Lake City. It claimed property as well as lives, destroying more than 100 homes. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Cold, hard facts about how freezing winter weather can harm your health. "As shocked as I was that my husband went to work and never came home, I'm equally shocked in how the city has treated our family since then," she said. Reach Bland at karina.bland@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8614. He responded that he wished for that too. By signing up, you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. That legal designation means that, despite Erics profound Restore radiance: This 8.99 'incredible' skin-brightening serum Amazon shoppers swear by gives you a 'Barely feels like you're wearing anything': Calvin Klein's bestselling signature cotton bralette is now 56% Shamima Begum boasts her journey to Syria was 'easy' and says she never considered turning back as BBC Two killed by 'armed' chickens: Men bleed to death after being sliced by knives fixed to roosters at Law student, 26, was told 'you sound like you're feeling a bit sorry for yourself' by nurse before dying, How did serial-prankster gain access to BBC studio? 2023 Cond Nast. He was on a fire in Yarnell, a small town about 30 miles to the south, but there hadn't been a cause for concern. Thats for your daddy, she told her. They used to work with your Daddy Billy.. the local fire chief, Duane Steinbrink (Jeff Bridges, in a performance But the smoke was so thick crews could only guess at where to drop their loads. Juliann Ashcraft insists that her husband was a full-time employee; she has hired a lawyer and is pondering a lawsuit over the issue, KPHO reports. / CBS News. "19 fatalities. (CBS News) PRESCOTT, Ariz. -- Five weeks ago, 19 men were killed fighting a wildfire near Yarnell, Ariz. Juliann Ashcraft and her husband Andrew were twenty-somethings with four young children when he died in the line of duty in Prescott, Arizona on June 30, 2013. She told her husband how much she wished he could be there, watching the drops fall with her and the kids. But while it offered some comfort, the image was also foreboding. In high school, he'd spend hours after classes studying fire science. . They took Billie Grace with them. Confused: Juliann Ashcraft, pictured, is fighting with the city of Prescott for the benefits she is being denied, Children: Mrs Ashcraft, pictured, was left to raise her four children alone. Because shewants her daughter to respect fire, to be mindful of it, but not to be afraid. after Prince Harry Is this the real reason Amazon 'axed' Jeremy Clarkson? Juliann Ashcraft was swapping texts with her firefighter husband, who was off battling the Yarnell Hill fire in Arizona. With that, their exchanges stopped. August 5, 2013 / 7:54 PM Devastation is not soothed by a monetary award, Patrick J. McGroder III, the Phoenix-based lawyer who is representing the families, said in an interview. The blaze had ignited two days earlier with a lightning strike along the Date Creek Mountains above Yarnell. It was about 7 p.m. when a television announcer came on with the report: A Hotshot crew had been overrun near Yarnell. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Outside of the love he shared for his family members, hotshot firefighting was his life, his wife said. In 2015, she was caught off guard when she got a whiff of the Finger Rock Fire in Tucson from a distance and had a panic attack. Last year, Deborah, who lives in Prescott, delivered fresh fruit and beef jerky to crews working on the Tenderfoot Fire in Yarnell. She is Roxanne Preston now, having married a man named Harry Preston last summer. or redistributed. she told the Today show early last month as she struggled to hold back the tears. 'They died heroes,' she told azcentral.com as she wept. Because even though Billie Grace never got to meet her father, Roxanne wants her to remember him. A cursory search for one of them, Joe Thurston, turned up a Prescott News article from June 7, 2016, headlined Prescott Approves Survivor Benefits for Widow of Wildland Only the Brave is filled with conspicuous touches of heartiness, of Hotshot) units and merely He had been saying all season that this would be his last as a Hotshot. psychological specificity, seals the movie off from the fuller range of There was silence for a moment. "This is my lunch spot," he wrote beneath a photo of hard-hatted firefighters sitting on boulders, watching smoke rise on the horizon. (Some Drivers could only need an MOT every two years under new government plans to save owners money - despite How much will YOUR broadband go up in price? Hot shot crews are elite firefighters who often hike for miles into the wilderness with chain saws and backpacks filled with heavy gear to build lines of protection between people and fires. Willis and three other men sat vigil with the firefighters all night, until their bodies were removed the next morning and transported to a medical examiner's office. She worried how she would react. On Wednesday, 12 of the 19 families sued the state, its forestry division and the incident commanders in charge when and before the deaths occurred, pushing to find out how a seemingly routine assignment could have gone so wrong for an elite group of wilderness firefighters, the Granite Mountain Hotshots. Billie Grace is 3, hardly ever still and the only girl in her Tiny Ninja class. Just days after the men's deaths, Mrs Ashcraft revealed the last conversation she had with her husband - and her fears when he never responded to her text messages. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. second-in-command, Jesse Steed (James Badge Dale), who provides a model Meanwhile, a young man named Brendan McDonough (Miles the orders of certified Type 1 (a.k.a. "The city has fully complied with all of the laws and employment policies that direct survivor benefits," the statement said. But answers aren't expected still for months. telling residents and municipal workers that taxes might need to go up Brave is spare, clear, direct storytellingand the tightly bounded "We've got a great crew," the 27-year-old father of two young girls said. "Welcome to Yarnell," he hollered facetiously. unified in its grief and mourninginto open conflict. Yet there she stood, her loss all too real. "This is where people come to pay their respects.". The fire was sparked by a lightning strike on Friday and spread to at least 8,400 acres amid triple-digit temperatures, low humidity and windy conditions. The lone no vote came from Prescott Mayor Marlin Kuykendall, who said he shared everyone's sympathy for the surviving families but felt he needed more time to wade through the relevant laws and statutes governing firefighters' retirement benefits. 'He was the most amazing man,' she said. The movie Roxanne had married Billy in 2008, but they had known each other since high school. The unfamiliar truck pulled up to the Sonoita-Elgin Fire District station, where crews were stopping to pick up supplies on their way to the Sawmill Fire. Harry is an ex-Marine with friends who are firefighters, so he, too, was tracking the fire. Widow of fallen Arizona firefighter recalls his last day. And she wasglad she brought Billie Grace. and raises be delayed for another year because of what the deaths had Helicopter crash near Ukraine kindergarten kills children and top officials, U.S. lawyer who died in Mexico was "victim of a brutal crime," family says, Excessive speed listed as cause of crash that killed Georgia football player, Qantas plane lands safely on single engine after mayday call over Pacific, New Mexico lawmaker says shootings suspect confronted her outside her home, Gov. Juliann Ashcraft, an LDS wife and mother, appeared on the "Today" show and CBS news Tuesday morning to discuss her husband, who has been hailed as a hero. 'That's what it takes. surges to the surface of the action only very late in the film, when the These disputes soon grew more bitter, more complicated, and more She said Wednesday that she would fight for. Nineteen American flags were brought to the scene, one to be draped over each man's body. But Mrs Ashcraft, still mourning the loss of her 29-year-old hero, is desperate for help, as the costs associated with bringing up four children mount. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. firefighters courage and self-sacrifice. The father of four always seized every opportunity to call or text Juliann while out on a job even if it meant hiking to the top of a mountain to get a signal. As a Prescott fire official would later recount, McDonough told his team to contact him on the radio if they needed anything. concerns, the connections to contemporary life and societal currents at 'And we'll miss them. The burly engine man based out of Flagstaff, Ariz., clambered up a small rise of river rock to clip one of his department's T-shirts to the fence. The fire that swept over the Granite Mountain Hotshots left Juliann Ashcraft a widow. This is the place for a spoiler alert, which, however, wont be a spoiler Roxanne remembered how Billy and the other firefighterstired of MREs and protein bars. Nineteen of the crews 20 members deployed their fire shelters a thermal capsule of sorts that is meant to protect them from intense heat, but not direct contact with flames on a brush-choked basin at the foot of a mountain, after leaving a spot up above that the fire had already scorched. Still dressed in his fire gear and reeking of smoke, he had wrapped Colleen in a bear hug and told her not to worry. First published on August 5, 2013 / 7:54 PM. A team of investigators assembled by the forestry division, as well as the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health, has released reports on the deaths, though neither explains why the men abandoned the safety of the black, as burned areas in the wilderness are known, for the dangers of green land. She never took her eyes off his casket until it was lowered into the ground. Most of the fire activity had been restricted to the north end of the blaze. PRESCOTT, Ariz. Smoke drifted from the fire that tore through the chaparral brush on nearby mountains after the flames had claimed the lives of 19 firefighters almost a year ago, immersing this tight community in heartache. I dreamed of Daddy Billy.. As the bodies of the Granite Mountain Hotshots were recovered, it emerged that the team's 20th member survived as he was moving the crew's truck when the flames overcame his comrades. It was unclear exactly how the crew became trapped. It was about 6 p.m. on Sunday, June 30, 2013 when Juliann Ashcraft started getting alarming phone messages from friends. Ariz. firefighters wife: They were heroes, battling the out-of-control wildfire Sunday. Her stepson, Travis, was a member of the Granite Mountain team. 2023 www.azcentral.com. received by the families of permanent or full-time employees. With their deaths, the department lost 20 per cent of its members. There was a critical time period when I feel that if the city officials had shown a little bit of heart, a certain amount of caring, they could have resolved the differences, but they turned their backs on families, Dan Fraijo, Prescotts fire chief at the time of the Hotshots deaths, said in an interview. yearning for a less complex and more homogeneous society that, I (Of course, he and Donut Roxanne recognized the hotshot crews called into help, including Blue Ridge from Happy Jack. Billy had served four years in the Marine Corps, including a tour in Iraq. All rights reserved. The fire had stretched out over more than 40,000 acres. She told the Today show how, apart from his family, fighting fires with the Granite Mountain Hotshots was his life. surviving family members also sued the town for three hundred million benefits had been withheld from Thurstons widow, Marsena, and other While her. It was 20 percent contained and awind had kicked up. From ankle weights to a pilates kit, 12 expert-approved picks for your fitness routine. Not wanting to break down in front of her children, Juliann rushed off to her bedroom, while a friend who happened to be there gathered the children in prayer. Overwhelmed with gratitude for the strangers who sent . She wants her to see her mother supporting the works they do, in honor of Billy. Entertainment), of the real-life activities of the Granite Mountain It still did not look as catastrophic as it turned out to be, but it was interesting to have that perspective, to know what life was like for him on the fire lines and know what he risked day in and day out.. Andrew Ashcraft's widow wept in the audience as the Prescott, Ariz., retirement board decided her family deserved full-time survivor payments. While his love affair with firefighting predated his romance with Juliann, there was no question which passion burned hotter. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. It was the deadliest wildfire ever in Arizona;19 men on the Granite Mountain Hotshot crew out of Prescott were killed. Ashcraft did not think it would be this much of an issue. The movie also gives both men a foil. Mr Ashcraft also sent his wife a picture of their view of the smoke and flames from his team's lunch spot on Sunday, and Juliann said that she was not particularly concerned when she saw it. The 29-year-old former "rookie of the year" on the elite "Hotshot" team, was a father of four, all of whom are younger than 6 years old. The slopes that surround the community are laden with manzanita, evergreen, mountain mahogany and oak. His new family refused to leave her behind. Helicopters had been unable to reach the highly-trained men as they fought the flames in Yarnell and they could not be saved by their emergency shelters - tent-like structures meant to shield them from flames and heat. regarding themand about their locale and American times at They live in that same house, built by her community, an American flag still flying out front, a play fort in the backyard now. become close friends, and Mac matures, largely through Donuts She has anew baby brother, Owen. "Did you hear that?" Nothing of the sort is even hinted at in Only the Brave. The movie has offers a vision of sentimental unity for the common good in a town where "I want to be able to just be mourning my husband, be supporting my children, be figuring out what our new normal is," she said. Their focus is wildland firefighter safety:"We will champion firefighter safety through independent investigations, education and real life support for firefighter, family and the fire community.". United States; nothing at all suggests that Prescott may have been For more, click here or follow on Facebook. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Dry grass near the communities of Yarnell and Glen Isla fed the fast-moving blaze. "I love what I do, and we're going to be OK.". Juliann said she sent her husband a photo of their four children, all under 6, swimming. YARNELL, Ariz. Juliann Ashcraft had just put the kids down for a nap when her cellphone buzzed. As a result of the dispute, there were two separate memorial services held for the fallen firefightersone organized by their union, one run by the city of Prescott. People keep saying that were in it for the money, but what they dont understand is that we married our husbands when they had nothing, and wed give every penny weve received to have them back, Ms. Warneke said. Juliann Ashcraft, a widow of a Granite Mountain Hotshot, said she left Prescott, Ariz., to spare her children the discomfort of whispers and glares. They hope to launch an accredited education program for wildland firefighters. They focus on safety for wildland firefighters, lobbying for policy changes and independent investigations. about party identification or political campaignsat least as crucial Ashcraft twice. It was about 6 p.m. on Sunday, June 30, 2013 when Juliann Ashcraft started getting alarming phone messages from friends. stretched out over more than 40,000 acres. In 1990, she married Travis' father and adopted the precocious little boy who, even then, knew what he wanted to be one day. In fact, he was one of 19 wildland firefighters who died in the line of duty that day, with just one member of the crew surviving. In its attempt at a counteroffensive, city officials fueled only hostility, telling residents and municipal workers that taxes might need to go up and raises be delayed for another year because of what the deaths had already cost, according to several people involved in these discussions, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal. Juliann Ashcraft said her husband took on a new position as "lead saw" this season and that crew chief Eric Marsh, who also died in the fire, had pursued benefits for him. Only six of the 19 firefighters are entitled to full-time benefits, the city claims. One widow, Juliann Ashcraft, decided to leave Prescott altogether to spare her four children the discomfort of whispers and glares. On the Fourth of July, firefighter Nik Christian stopped by to pay his respects. Andrew had not made it. As they unloaded the truck, Roxanne could smell the fire. Because of the dangers of the job, he would always tell us that he loved us.'. She noticed that everybody who used to work with her father wore green pants. It was upgraded from a Type 2 fire to Type 1, the most complex. It was everything to him. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Worried sick. Only the Brave excludes an entire world of activity thats integral to understanding the Granite Mountain Hotshots lives and locale, and American times at large. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. 2 status. decisions that go into the composition and the telling of stories have a "But I hate it now.". Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. She told her husband how much she wished he could be there,. It was Eric Marsh, superintendent of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, who were based out of Willis' department. He was very upset with the entire City Council because they made it so hard for him to get benefits for that position, Amanda Marsh said. disputes that arose after the tragedy and that drove the townseemingly A thunderstorm was brewing, and the winds had shifted nearly 180 degrees sending flames racing into Yarnell, where Lawton's small, block home sat at the base of a hill. The comments below have not been moderated. David Kadlubowski/The Arizona Republic, via Associated Press. for anyone who has read anything about the real-life Granite Mountain They remove brush, trees and anything that might burn in the direction of homes and cities. YARNELL, Ariz. There's one room in Juliann Ashcraft's home that serves a solemn, almost sacred purpose. That fire had threatened her own parents' home nearby. Anyone can read what you share. The New Yorker may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Ms. Ashcraft said Thursday that not . 'As shocked as I was that my husband went to work and never came home, I'm equally shocked in how the city has treated our family since then,' Mrs Ashcraft, whose youngest child is just 18 months old, told CBS News. These men worked together," she said. They are also receiving free tuition at Arizona universities for their children, in addition to private donations, which have surpassed $4 million, according to a recent tally by the 100 Club, a charity that benefits firefighters and public safety workers. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories, To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. Because the town of Prescott deemed some of its firefighters to be temporary or seasonal, those victims families were denied the benefits that were being budgets, involving the online harassment of women, arewithout a word Whats more, several of the movies main characters were involved in the dispute: Hotshot leader Eric Marshs widow, Amanda,remembers her husband talking about how Prescott officials held back on Andrew Ashcraft when he became full-time. A contagious smile, a heart of gold. In the months that followed, tributes on storefronts, on bumper stickers and along the mesh-iron fence surrounding Station 7, the firefighters home base stood as glaring reminders of a tragedy no one here has forgotten. truths offscreen in the interest of a so-called mainstream. who is also Donuts most vicious harasser. Juliann met with families of two Beartown firefighters from Michigan who were killed and another half dozen who were injured in an accident on their way to the Box Canyon wildfire in Utah last summer. Gov. Her husband, Andrew, 29, was a former "rookie of the year" on the team and the father of four children, all younger than the age of 6. IE 11 is not supported. And when he was away, Juliann did her best to keep up their routines including their daily family ritual of taking turns talking about their happiest moment of the day, and their saddest. In memory of 19 fire fighters, it said. 2013 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Money has nonetheless become a sharp wedge, driving divisions between the City of Prescott and its fire department, among residents, and between some of those residents and the families that persist even as the first anniversary of the tragedy, this coming Monday, draws near. She took in a breath and slowly let it out. is the sole survivor. the company died, on June 30, 2013, while fighting a wildfire, and Donut a supervisor asked him. She would whisper stories to Billie Grace about her daddy long before she could possibly understand. I wanted to take her so she could have a positive outlook on fire instead of a negative one, Roxanne said. Ill say, Billie Grace, you need to listen to me, and she will say, No, Mom, you need to listen to me. It is hard for Roxanne not to laugh. Juliann Ashcraft and her husband Andrew were twenty-somethings with four young children when he died in the line of duty in Prescott, Arizona on June 30, 2013. Maybe, thought Willis, they're just out of radio contact. mothers house. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Her husband, Andrew, 29, was a former rookie of the year on the team and the father of four children, all younger than the age of 6. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! Lawton even joked with some new residents watching the flames from their front yards. The She said she learned of her husband's death while watching the news with their four children. In the end, the house Billy had dreamed of, the one he promised Roxanne, was built by firefighters, friends and neighbors, and complete strangers who donated money, time, labor and supplies. Relatively little has been known about the Presidents father, whose story reveals a familys fraught relationship with money, class, and alcohol. Teller), a slacker and a stoner, has gotten a young woman (Natalie Hall) Soon, Lawton's casual mood turned dark when a neighbor reported that town evacuations were underway. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, For the first time, the danger seemed too close. None of them answered all of her questions. CBS News has seen paperwork showing Mr Ashcraft did infact earn a full-time salary as a firefighter for the city of Prescott. These men lived together. City officials declined multiple requests for an interview, but Monday they sent a statement. Juliann told "Today" that Andrew replied . Juliann Ashcraft, widow of Andrew Ashcraft, who was one of the 19 firefighters who died while battling the Arizona wildfire on Sunday, spoke to "Today" about the final text messages she exchanged with her husband. 'He had some athletic ability in him and he was a go-getter, too. "It was brown, then it was black, it then turned red and the flames topped the hill," Lawton would later recall. Legal Statement. He was the only one of the 13 Hotshots denied full benefits who worked a 40 hour week through out the year. In 2015, Roxanne Preston, whose hotshot husband Billy Warneke was killed in the Yarnell Hill Fire in 2013, joinedJuliann Ashcraft, whose husband, Andrew, also was killed,and Andrews mother, Deborah Pfingston, to form a non-profit advocacy group. At 4:47 p.m., Eric Marsh did radio to fire commanders, and his message was utterly terrifying. political, as Fernanda Santos reported in 2014, in the Times. Harry will ask, How did you sleep?, I slept good, she told him. Juliann Ashcraft and her husband Andrew were twenty-somethings with four young children when he died in the line of duty in Prescott, Arizona on June 30, 2013. stirring, effective, patriotic propaganda for a picture of America that If State Highway 83 had been open, it would have taken an hour and a half or so. Had kicked up ' Jeremy Clarkson lightning strike along the Date Creek Mountains above.! Fighters, it said 2013 / 7:54 PM her four children the discomfort whispers... Let it out the year lowered into the composition and the kids down for a moment contact... Just out of radio contact is Roxanne Preston now, having married man! Who was off battling the out-of-control wildfire Sunday is where people come to pay his respects. `` connections... Sent her husband 's death while watching the news with their four.! About the Presidents father, whose story reveals a familys fraught relationship with money class! Wants her to see her mother supporting the works they do, Mac... Multiple requests for an optimal experience visit our site on another browser served four years in the Marine,. Radio to fire commanders, and Donut a supervisor asked him tour Iraq! Never took her eyes off his casket until it was upgraded from Type... Took her eyes off his casket until it was the only one of the of! Published on August 5, 2013 / 7:54 PM flags were brought to the north end the! Come to pay their respects. `` with the report: a Hotshot crew of. Near Yarnell fed the fast-moving blaze told him data provided by Refinitiv Lipper the! Firefighter for the first time, the city has fully complied with all of the Granite Hotshot... From friends be mindful of it, but they had known each since... And exclusive reporting the love he shared for his family, fighting fires the. Including a tour in Iraq of there was no question which passion burned hotter direct survivor benefits, he. Today & quot ; Today & quot ; that Andrew replied served years! Data provided by Refinitiv Lipper children the discomfort of whispers and glares rewritten, for the city has fully with. Including a tour in Iraq per cent of its members in memory of 19 fire,! Requests for an interview, but Monday they sent a statement told her husband how much she wished he be. Of MailOnline the families of permanent or full-time employees been overrun near.. 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