A contract firefighter was killed and another was injured by a falling tree snag while fighting fire in the Deschutes National Forest in Oregon on Thursday morning.
According to a report from local television station KTVZ, one contract firefighter died at the scene of the fire in the Mt. Washington Wilderness Area of Sisters and the other was taken to St. Charles-Bend for treatment of injuries.
Neither firefighter was identified in news reports. KTVZ reported they were both working for R&K Water Services out of Bonney Lake, Washington.
The two firefighters were working on a fire that was sparked by lightning in the high Cascades of Central Oregon.
After the incident was reported, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue crews and an ambulance headed to the area of Forest Roads Thursday morning, according to the television station.
A helicopter was dispatched to the scene as well as several SAR members who specialize in mountain rescues to help at the scene.
Editor's note: Firehouse.com will provide more information as it becomes available.
