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Fire and Ashes
An expert’s report from the front lines where wildland fires keep getting hotter, bigger, and more dangerous to the men and women who fight them
In 2002, more than seven million acres were burned at a fire-fighting cost of over a billion dollars. Are wilderness fires now a tragic and enduring feature of the American landscape? John N. Maclean, author of the acclaimed Fire on the Mountain, offers a view from the front lines, combining action-packed storytelling with moving insights about firefighters and informed analysis of firefighting strategy past and present.
Beginning with a riveting account of the worst case of arson in wildfire history, the 1953 Rattlesnake Fire in Mendocino National Forest, which claimed the lives of fifteen firefighters, Maclean explains the mysterious dynamics of fire, and the courage and techniques required to combat it. One such mystery underlines the life- threatening 1999 Sadler Fire in Nevada when a line of flames suddenly blew up, trapping six firefighters mistakenly placed in harm’s way. For the final story Maclean returns to Mann Gulch, the site of his father’s classic Young Men and Fire, to interview the last survivor of the worst disaster in the history of smoke jumping. From it we understand why fatal fires burn for generations.
Offering a prescient view of the inevitable conflict between people, property, and nature, Fire and Ashes presents a riveting and emotional story, one that in many ways John Maclean was destined to tell.
PRAISE FOR FIRE AND ASHES
“ This collection of two long and two short essays on U.S. wildfire fighting displays the excellent reporting skills that made Maclean’s first book, Fire on the Mountain, a dazzling and popular success.”
“Maclean notes the folly of hubris in the face of wildfire, the administrative snafus that can result in entrapment of firefighters, the pure miracle of escape (“The nugget of flame churned at the mouth of the gulch, then unexpectedly sped away”), even the value of a personal prayer. “Mommy, help me! I’m burning!” was the radio call of one firefighter. She lived, happy to face down the jibes. Sharp descriptive analyses capture this atavistic force that charges across the human imagination in phenomenal and dreadful fashion.”
“Maclean has mastered sleuthing out the perilous interactions of wildfires and firefighters, putting the results of his investigations in the voices of those who were face-to-face with the fire demon. From these enthralling tales emerge hard-earned lessons that cannot be ignored, lessons that are changing the ways in which wildland fires are considered and fought - or not fought. Such is a worthy quest - and makes fascinating reading.”
“Just as combat zones inspire conflicting recollections, firefighting disasters are a challenge to reconstruct, but Maclean again rises to the task.. Careful in analysis, Maclean turns visceral when imparting the sudden terror of life-ending flames, or, as for a survivor of the 1949 Mann Gulch disaster whom he visits, a life-searing whirlwind. A solid choice that will be in demand, particularly during the West’s summer fire season.”
“An expert’s report on why wildland fires keep getting hotter, bigger, and more dangerous to the men and women who fight them ... Maclean’s vivid prose and deep understanding of nature transported me to places I have never been, leaving me with the feeling that I had run side by side with these remarkable Americans. John Maclean is a natural storyteller and a gifted reporter. I could not put this book down.”