> JULY 30, 02:02 ET > > Memorial Held for Dead Firefighters > > By KIM CURTIS > Associated Press Writer > AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez [20K] > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > HAPPY CAMP, Calif. (AP) ? Tears welled up in Jeremey DePaolo's eyes as he > remembered his tough-as-nails sister, one of three firefighters who died > battling a blaze near the Oregon state line. > > ``First, Heather fell in love with the West. Then she fell in love with > fire,'' DePaolo said Monday. ``If she had to die in a tragic way, I'm glad > it was doing what she loved.'' > > Heather DePaolo, 29, died early Sunday when her truck plunged more than > 1,000 feet down the side of a mountain. Also killed were John Self, 19, and > Steven Oustad, 51. > > More than 200 people gathered Monday at a memorial service on an elementary > school athletic field. > > Bagpipes played ``Amazing Grace'' and firefighters placed green glowsticks > at the base of a flagpole. Gary Lake, a representative of the Karuk tribe, > thanked the firefighters for their sacrifice. > > Ryan Smith, 20, and Alex Glover, 19, survived the crash. Glover suffered > burns and bruises and was released Monday from a hospital. Smith remained > hospitalized in serious condition with a head injury, said Klamath National > Forest spokesman Brian Harris. > > The U.S. Forest Service crew was part of a five-engine strike force based at > Lassen National Forest. The fire was ignited by lightning a week ago, and by > late Monday had consumed 1,650 acres. It was 20 percent contained. > > Jeremey DePaolo, a volunteer firefighter, said his sister loved to snowboard > in Montana in the winter and hike the Grand Canyon in the summer. She was > behind the wheel of the truck when it slipped off the 11-foot-wide road in > the dark. > > ``If that truck went over the cliff it wasn't because she wasn't trying to > keep it on the road,'' said DePaolo. He said his sister fought her first > fire several years ago as an AmeriCorps volunteer in South Carolina. > > Investigators got their first look at the accident scene Monday. Heavy > flames and smoke had kept them away earlier. > > ``I don't know how anyone survived,'' said Robert Koetting, a California > Highway Patrol investigator. > ??? > On the Net: > National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov/ > Lassen National Forest: http://www.r5.fs.fed.us/lassen/ > > --------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Name: APnews.jpg > APnews.jpg Type: JPEG Image (image/jpeg) > Encoding: base64 -- Andr� Cramblit: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Operations Director Northern California Indian Development Council NCIDC (http://www.ncidc.org) is a non-profit that meets the development needs of American Indians and operates an art gallery featuring the art of California tribes (http://www.americanindianonline.com) COMMUNICATION IS THE KEY TO THE FUTURE OF AMERICAN INDIANS/NATIVE AMERICANS/ALASKAN NATIVES & HAWAIIAN ISLANDERS. For news of interest to Natives subscribe send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] or go to: http://www.topica.com/lists/NativeAmericanNews/subscribe/?location=listinfo Visit and show your support for the Grass Roots Oyate http://members.tripod.com/GrassRootsOyate Clemency for Leonard Peltier. Sign the Petition. http://petitiononline.com/Release/petition.html ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?b1ddNB.b2HgmN Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
