Officials ID Alaskan crew member who died while fighting Boundary Waters wildfires
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Federal wildland fire officials have identified the crew member who died this week while working to contain the wildfires that have burned in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for over a month.
Leslie R. Washington, 41, of Noorvik, Alaska, died Tuesday morning while responding to the Bear Trap Fire, which has burned about 30,000 acres in the Boundary Waters north of Ely, between the Echo Trail and the Canadian border.
Officials have not released details of how Washington died or how his death may have been connected to fighting the fires. The Eastern Area Complex Incident Management Team, which is overseeing the firefighting efforts, earlier said he died at an Ely hospital following a “medical emergency.”
The U.S. Department of the Interior said it is not releasing additional medical information at this time out of consideration for Washington’s family.
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Washington was a wildland firefighter who worked for Scorched Earth Services, an Alaska Native-owned company that contracts with the federal government to provide firefighting crews to help with incidents around the country. Its firefighters come from communities across rural Alaska.
Washington was assigned to the company’s 20-person K-River 2 contract crew, which was supporting the response to the Bear Trap Fire. He was one of more than 1,000 crew members who have worked to contain the wildfires burning in northeastern Minnesota over the past month.
“We are heartbroken at the loss of a wildland firefighter who died while protecting others,” said U.S. Wildland Fire Service Chief Brian Fennessy. “We mourn alongside his families, loved ones, friends and crewmates as they face this profound loss.”
Scorched Earth Services confirmed Washington’s death in a social media post, saying “our hearts are with his family, the community of Noorvik, Alaska and the Inupiaq people of the Northwest Arctic.”
Firefighters and other first responders and law enforcement officials escorted Washington’s body in a vehicle procession from Ely to the Duluth area on Tuesday, and then to the Twin Cities.
The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa also recognized Washington’s service.
“In so many ways, we understand this loss because our Fond du Lac Band and our neighboring Tribal Nations often send our wildfire crews across the country each year, and we share in the tragedies that impact fire families and Native communities wherever they occur,” the Band’s leadership said.
“We also hold deep respect for the many Native people who serve in wildfire response across the country, including members of our own Fond du Lac Band who have a history of supporting fires throughout the nation and continue to do so today.”
