The IAWF sends our condolences to the families and co-workers of the three firefighters who died on two separate fires yesterday in Colorado.

Fire Chief Terry DeVore and firefighter John Schwartz, Jr. of the Olney Springs Volunteer Fire Department were killed on a fire near Ordway, CO. They were in their engine in heavy smoke and crossed a bridge which collapsed.

Gert Marais, of Fort Benton, Montana, was killed when his Single Engine Air Tanker crashed while fighting a wildland fire near Fort Carson, CO.

(originally posted March, 2006)

The International Association of Wildland Fire has prepared a list, by date of the year, of some of the more famous, or infamous, wildland fires around the world over the last 150 years. It is not intended to be a complete list of every fatality fire.

There are several purposes of doing the research and compiling this list by calendar date. It is hoped that individuals and organizations involved in fire, especially wildland fire, will mark these dates on a calendar, or refer to the IAWF’s Wildland Fire Event Calendar at www.iawfonline.org.

By having these wildland fires on a calendar, the lessons learned from even a 130 year old fire will be less likely to be forgotten. An unforgotten lesson learned may save the life of a current or future firefighter. The .pdf file of the list can be found here. The data has been gathered from many different sources, and the IAWF assumes no responsibility for its accuracy.