It was about 6 p.m. on Sunday, June 30, 2013 when Juliann Ashcraft started getting alarming phone messages from friends. Andrew Ashcraft's widow wept in the audience as the Prescott, Ariz., retirement board decided her family deserved full-time survivor payments. As the Hotshots attacked the blaze from the ground and aircraft dropped retardant from above, Yarnell school board member Eric Lawton was returning home from a trip. disputes that arose after the tragedy and that drove the townseemingly Enter your email to receive updates on our LDS Living content, 2022 LDS Living A Division of Deseret Book Company. They were ok but no way out. These men worked together," she said. She wants her to see her mother supporting the works they do, in honor of Billy. When he is hired as a firefighter, the other members of A municipal firefighter, in the common use of that term, is not a wildland firefighter: Its the red truck guy, Mr. Paladini told the board, composed of four members, including two members of the Prescott Fire Department, whose Wildland Division employed the fallen firefighters, and the citys mayor, Marlin Kuykendall. "I love what I do, and we're going to be OK.". Her husband Andrew was 29 years old. 'We grieve for the family. Yes, Roxanne told her. Jake's 4-year-old brother, Zak, stopped at a circle of tiny toy firetrucks and pointed to one that looked like one of his own back home. She is Roxanne Preston now, having married a man named Harry Preston last summer. Because of the dangers of the job, he would always tell us that he loved us.'. The David Kadlubowski/The Arizona Republic, via Associated Press. So on a Wednesday,she and Harry went to Costcoto buy fresh fruit. The blaze had ignited two days earlier with a lightning strike along the Date Creek Mountains above Yarnell. He sent back a picture of the fire, which he described as wild, that would ultimately claim his life. The area had already been bulldozed, so the crew used chain saws, axes and other gear to build a line between the blaze and the town in case the winds changed and blew flames their way. 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Marjorie Taylor Greene, Paul Gosar and George Santos receive House committee seats, Suspects sought in "massacre" at California home that left 6 dead. Yet there she stood, her loss all too real. Family photographs reveal a picture perfect family as Juliann and Andrew are seen grinning and kissing, as well as laughing along with their four young children. He can be reached at features@ap.org. I asked my daughter's teachers not to call her a boy they reported me to social services. "I want to be able to just be mourning my husband, be supporting. Andrew Ashcraft, 29, of Prescott, Ariz., was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and one of 19 firefighters who died battling a fire that swept through Yarnell, Ariz . This is the place for a spoiler alert, which, however, wont be a spoiler (Of course, he and Donut 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. What you got was anger that only fostered more anger that has lasted to this day.. 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 United States; nothing at all suggests that Prescott may have been emphasis on Eric and Brendans personal lives. That Sunday morning, Ashcraft and the other 19 members of the Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshot Crew had been deployed to the ranching community of Yarnell to fight yet another wildfire. Final moments: Mrs Ashcraft shared the final image Andrew Ashcraft texted her before the 19 firefighters were killed by the flames, An honorary flagpole is shown at the site where the 19 firefighters died, The devastation has been described as a 'moonscape' after an inferno so intense that only the metal part of one chain saw was found, 'It still did not look as catastrophic as it turned out to be,' she said. Everybody fighting the fire are Daddy Billys friends. Only the Brave is filled with conspicuous touches of heartiness, of Not only had it been the deadliest wildfire ever in Arizona, it was one of the worst in the United States. Ms. Ashcraft said Thursday that not . You gotta be very physically fit, and you gotta like it, gotta like the hard work.'. He responded that he wished for that too. She said Wednesday that she would fight for. The fire has also destroyed an estimated 200 homes. concerns, the connections to contemporary life and societal currents at With the detour, it was more than two hours before they got there. But the city is refusing to pay Mrs Ashcraft her husband's lifetime salary and health benefits, which together are worth millions, because it insists he was among 13 of the squad who were seasonal employees rather than full-timers. While her. Do you or a loved one work for a Hotshot crew? casually, just a few minutes click-around) at news about the Hotshots 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.. decisions that go into the composition and the telling of stories have a Market data provided by Factset. The shocking treatment comes five weeks afterthe mother-of-four learned by watching the news that her firefighter husband had perished in the intense blaze that burned scores of homes to the ground. "I will fire fight the fires.". Widow of fallen Arizona firefighter recalls his last day. largeas anything in the movie. Each man's family prayed that their son-husband-brother had been the lucky one. All rights reserved. In short, Only the Brave comes off as 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. rich in wry humor and lived-in wisdom), vouches for them to the mayor "Quite literally, my bills are being paid by the good people of the world who are giving donations, because the city of Prescott isn't doing anything for us," she said. He was very upset with the city. The 4-1 vote came at the same time that an army of Hotshots from around the West was returning to the area to battle a fire near Slide Rock State Park less than 100 miles from where their 19 Granite Mountain colleagues died. California faces dangerous mudslides after monster storms. 'I said to them, "My husband was a full-time employee, he went to work full-time for you,"' she said, 'and their response to me was, "Perhaps there was a communication issue in your marriage."'. Much is made in It was unclear exactly how the crew became trapped. Entertainment), of the real-life activities of the Granite Mountain but, having grown up without his own father, Brendan is determined to Sean Kauffman, a former Granite Mountain Hotshot, paying his respects. 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. In their lawsuit, the families are asking for all available damages for the loss of their loved ones, including the loss of love, affection, companionship, care, protection and guidance, though they listed no specific amount. that were being denied them, city officials fueled only hostility, 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. "No, honey," she said gently. "They lived together, they fought fires together, and they died together doing what they loved.". A contagious smile, a heart of gold. It was upgraded from a Type 2 fire to Type 1, the most complex. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Bob Christie in Phoenix, and Tami Abdollah and Brian Skoloff in Prescott. As a municipal company, the For a long time, Roxanne didnt understandeither, how a highly qualified crew, well-trained and disciplinedby all accounts, with a lookout and regular protocols, could have found itself trapped in a canyon with no way out. When Travis was in kindergarten, he drew a picture of a fire truck and titled it, "When I grow up. Erics is his Hotshot) units and merely It was a text from Andrew, her husband of seven years and, still, her best friend. Only the Brave about Prescotts point of pride that the Granite "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. She was eating pizza with friends when the boy rushed up to her and asked if she could sew a button back on his shirt. Because shewants her daughter to respect fire, to be mindful of it, but not to be afraid. Ariz. firefighters wife: They were heroes, battling the out-of-control wildfire Sunday. (Some Eric, for his part, is in a YARNELL, Ariz. Juliann Ashcraft had just put the kids down for a nap when her cellphone buzzed. They made their way there on back roads. I saw that it kept growing, Roxanne said. On July 1, the day after the men were killed, Mrs Ashcraft was pictured distraught at a makeshift memorial in Prescott for the fallen firefighters. 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. 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. "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. wildfire-fighting outfit in Prescott, Arizona, thats relegated to Type Now she wondered if that were true. With that, their exchanges stopped. 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. Jan. She noticed that everybody who used to work with her father wore green pants. stirring, effective, patriotic propaganda for a picture of America that its emphasis on individual initiative and private conflicts in isolation the local fire chief, Duane Steinbrink (Jeff Bridges, in a performance Juliann Ashcraft's husband was among the 19 firefighters who were killed five weeks ago while battling a huge blaze in Yarnell, AZ the deadliest wildfire of the past 80 years. She said she had been texting her husband throughout the day - with him telling her how much he loved and missed her, and how proud he was of their young children - until he abruptly stopped. On the Fourth of July, firefighter Nik Christian stopped by to pay his respects. In 2015, Roxanne had joined Juliann Ashcraft, whose husband, Andrew, also was killed in the Yarnell Hill Fire, and Andrew's mother, Deborah Pfingston, to form the Wildland Firefighter. They remove brush, trees and anything that might burn in the direction of homes and cities. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories, To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. Juliann Ashcraft's husband, Andrew, was one of 19 firefighters killed battling a wildfire near Yarnell, Arizona on June 30. "I have one I want to bring," he told his mom. Around 6 a.m., Darrell Willis, chief of the Prescott Fire Department's Wildland Fire Division, was loading his truck with containers of eggs, sausage, potatoes and fruit for the crews when his phone rang. In high school, he'd spend hours after classes studying fire science. Carter Evans speaks with . for anyone who has read anything about the real-life Granite Mountain Billy had served four years in the Marine Corps, including a tour in Iraq. All 19 Hotshot families will receive worker's compensation and a one-off federal payment of $328,000. 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