Ceremony Will Observe Anniversary of Thirtymile Fire Tragedy

The Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest will host a commemoration ceremony in observance of the twentieth anniversary of the Thirtymile Fire to honor and remember four Forest Service firefighters who lost their lives: The Thirtymile Fire Memorial was constructed at the site where Jessica Johnson, Devin Weaver, Karen FitzPatrick and Tom Craven died in the Chewuch River valley as a lasting honor to their memory.

On July 10, 2001, high temperatures, low humidity and severe drought conditions caused an abandoned cooking fire to ultimately erupt into a devastating firestorm that swept up the Chewuch River valley, trapping 14 firefighters and two campers.

Speakers will include Pacific Northwest Regional Forester Glenn Casamassa and other Forest Service leadership.
The event will be held from 10 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, July 10, 2021 and will be live streamed

Directions to the Memorial marker:

From State Route 20 about one-half mile west of Winthrop, Washington, turn north on West Chewuch Road (county road #1213).

Drive slowly and with extreme caution from here to the memorial. The road is narrow with sharp curves.

Travel approximately six miles to a stop sign where the county road joins with Forest Service Road #51. Stay to the left on Road #51 and continue north about 17 miles on a single lane paved road to Andrews Creek trailhead. Here the road turns to a single lane gravel road. The memorial is approximately four miles further, on the left side of the road.