Shown (left-right) are Cherokee Firefighters who have been dispatched to fight the fires currently burning in California, back row – Thomas Bendict, Mike Crowe Jr., Marq Ford, Rick McCoy, Eric Swayney, Kevin McCoy, Mario Esquivel, Sam Blythe, Jim Wolfe; front row – Anthony Welch and Charlie Reed. Not pictured – Doug Swayney, Brandon Sneed, Craig Arch and Ray Swayney. (Photo courtesy of David Lambert/BIA Cherokee Agency)
A fire crew from the BIA – Cherokee Agency is set to demobilize from the Rim Fire in California on Sunday, Sept. 8 and return home the same day, according to James Condon, BIA –Cherokee Agency fire management officer. That will complete the crew’s 14-day fire assignment.
As of Sept. 3, the Rim Fire has consumed 235,841 acres and 368.5 square miles. It is the largest wildfire in the country to date this year and is the fourth largest California wildfire in historical records dating to 1932.
A total of 28 percent of the fire is burning in the Yosemite National Park for a total of 66,155 acres. The fire is more than five times the size of Washington, DC.
There are currently 4,359 personnel on site at the site representing 44 states and the District of Columbia.
The fire started near a scenic overlook in Stanislaus National Forest called “Rim of the World”.
– One Feather staff report
