A graduate of Whitewater High School and former Whitewater Fire Department firefighter died while fighting a Northern California wildfire late last week, a U.S. Forest Service official reported Saturday.
According to the Associated Press:
Forest Service firefighter David Ruhl, 38, was in a vehicle in the Modoc National Forest and would have been scouting for ways to suppress the fire when crews lost contact with him in the evening of July 30, Forest Service spokesman Ken Sandusky said.
Officials said they couldn’t immediately say whether Ruhl had time to let others know by radio that he was in trouble, or whether flames overtook him too fast to call for help. His body was recovered Friday.
A post on the Whitewater Fire Department’s Facebook page stated members of the department “would like to take a moment to remember one of our brothers who paid the ultimate sacrifice. David Ruhl, a 1995 WHS Graduate was killed in the line of duty while assisting with fire operations at a Northern California Wildfire.
“The WFD currently has a memorial outside of our station to remember David. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers in the coming days and weeks,” the post stated.
According to the Associated Press:
An investigation has begun to determine exactly what happened and whether there are any lessons to be learned from Ruhl’s death, Forest Service spokeswoman Heather Noel said.
“We owe that not only to the family and to the friends and to the employees that worked with Dave, but we also owe it to the agency and the rest of the firefighters, so that whatever did happen won’t be repeated if possible,” she said.
Ruhl lived in Rapid City, South Dakota, with his wife and two children, who are devastated, said Scott Jacobson, Ruhl’s co-worker and a spokesman for the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota.
“He was a great husband, a great father and a great employee,” Jacobson said. “He was loved by everybody.”
Jacobson said Ruhl had been on temporary assignment since June in California, where he was an assistant fire management officer for the Big Valley Ranger District of the Modoc National Forest.
He wanted to broaden his firefighting experience and improve his skills because he was so passionate about his job, Jacobson said.
“He was just always eager to get out and about and work with people,” he said. “It says a lot about the kind of guy he was that he took time away from his family to do that.”
He said co-workers liked Ruhl for his easygoing and humble manner, and for always being there when one of them needed help.
By Saturday, the blaze about 100 miles south of the Oregon border had burned nearly 3 square miles and was 5 percent contained.
Erratic winds were challenging fire-containment efforts and moving the fire in all directions. Gusty winds were expected Saturday evening, when lightning also was forecast, the Forest Service said.
Ruhl grew up in Wisconsin and previously worked for the U.S. Coast Guard and as a correctional officer. He joined the Forest Service in 2001 and had been with Black Hills National Forest since 2011, Jacobson said.
Ruhl was the engine captain for Black Hills’ Mystic Ranger District, where he supervised a crew responsible for sizing up and suppressing new wildfires. He also oversaw crews as they contained prescribed burns intentionally set to control forest and prairie growth.
Black Hills National Forest supervisor Craig Bobzien said Ruhl was admired by his peers and cared deeply about his work.
“He was so highly respected, I think the kind of person that people just wanted to be around,” Bobzien said, his voice breaking.
A statement on the Black Hills National Forest website stated: Ruhl was “on temporary assignment to the Big Valley Ranger District of the Modoc National Forest in Adin, California, as an Assistant Fire Management Officer since June 14. Dave’s permanent position is Engine Captain on the Mystic Ranger District of the Black Hills National Forest in Rapid City.”
Ruhl, the statement revealed, began his Forest Service career in 2001 as a seasonal forestry technician. Previously, he served in the U.S. Coast Guard and as a correctional officer with the state of South Dakota. He lived in Rapid City with his wife and two children.
“Our hearts are heavy for Dave, Dave’s family, friends, the entire Forest Service and wildland fire community,” Forest Supervisor Craig Bobzien said.
Further details will follow pending a Forest Service investigation.
According to Cal Fire, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection more than 9,000 firefighters were battling at least 21 major wildfires in the state by Sunday. Because of the number of blazes burning across California, a statewide “lockdown” went into effect, meaning crews can’t take any time off.
The largest inferno, the Rocky Fire, has already incinerated 54,000 acres in three counties. As of Sunday night, it was only 5 percent contained and was feeding on the state’s drought to grow, Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant said.
The Rocky Fire was burning in Lake, Yolo and Colusa counties northwest of Sacramento. More than 12,100 people in more than 5,100 structures were under some type of evacuation order or advisory as of Sunday afternoon, according to Cal Fire.
Almost 2,000 fire personnel, 180 engines, four air tankers and 19 helicopters were battling that blaze as of Sunday.
Across the state, Cal Fire reported Aug. 2, more than 134,000 acres have been torched by the fires.
