Fire on the Mountain: The True Story of the South Canyon Fire - Paperback

by John N. MacLean (Author)

In 1994, a wildfire on Colorado's Storm King Mountain was wrongly identified at the outset as occurring in South Canyon. This unintentional, seemingly minor human error was merely the first in a string of mistakes that would be compounded into one of the greatest tragedies in the annals of wildland firefighting. Before it was done, fourteen courageous firefighters--men and women, hotshots, smokejumpers, and helicopter crew--would lose their lives battling the deadly, so-called South Canyon blaze. John N. Maclean's award-winning national bestseller, a gripping work of narrative nonfiction, Fire on the Mountain is a stunning reconstruction of the killer conflagration and its aftermath.

This definitive account of the South Canyon blaze reveals:

• A Minute-by-Minute Account: Follow the sequence of unintentional errors and escalating dangers that led to the tragic outcome on Storm King Mountain.
• A True Story of Courage: Honor the fourteen hotshots, smokejumpers, and helicopter crew who faced the impossible and made the ultimate sacrifice.
• Meticulous Investigation: Understand the science of fire behavior and the complex decisions firefighters must make in a split second.
• A Lasting Legacy: Explore the aftermath of the tragedy and the profound impact it had on the firefighting community and safety protocols.

Back Jacket

In 1994, a wildfire on Colorado's Storm King Mountain was wrongly identified at the outset as occurring in South Canyon.

This unintentional, seemingly minor human error was the first in a string of mistakes that would be compounded into one of the greatest tragedies in the annals of firefighting. Before it was done, fourteen courageous firefighters--men and women, hotshots, smoke jumpers, and helicopter crew--would lose their lives battling the deadly so-called South Canyon blaze.

John N. Maclean's award-winning national bestseller Fire on the Mountain is a stunning reconstruction of the killer conflagration and its aftermath--a page-turning true adventure of nature at its most unforgiving, and a powerful, indelible portrait of a unique breed of heroes who regularly and without question place their lives on the line.