In 2015, Roxanne had joinedJuliann Ashcraft, whose husband, Andrew, also was killed in the Yarnell Hill Fire, and Andrews mother, Deborah Pfingston, to formthe Wildland Firefighter Guardian Institute, a non-profit advocacy group. The local firefighters union said of the 13 hotshots denied full benefits, Andrew Ashcraft was the only one to work 40 hours a week year round. A cursory search for one of them, Joe Thurston, turned up a Prescott News article from June 7, 2016, headlined Prescott Approves Survivor Benefits for Widow of Wildland She said she learned of her husband's death while watching the news with their four children. Roxanne recognized the hotshot crews called into help, including Blue Ridge from Happy Jack. The unfamiliar truck pulled up to the Sonoita-Elgin Fire District station, where crews were stopping to pick up supplies on their way to the Sawmill Fire. Mr Ashcraft, like his colleagues, was protecting the people of Yarnell when he died, tragically leaving his young family without a husband, father or income. "They never think it will happen to them.. He often asks Roxanne, What do you think Billy would want?. The movie is a For a long time, Roxanne didnt understandeither, how a highly qualified crew, well-trained and disciplinedby all accounts, with a lookout and regular protocols, could have found itself trapped in a canyon with no way out. That fire had threatened her own parents' home nearby. It claimed property as well as lives, destroying more than 100 homes. While her husband was on a break during the early stages of battling a massive fire on Sunday, Ashcraft said she texted pictures of their kids swimming. "Quite literally, my bills are being paid by the good people of the world who are giving donations, because the city of Prescott isn't doing anything for us," she said. United States; nothing at all suggests that Prescott may have been We love them.'. Blue Ridge had helped battle the blaze that killed Billy and the hotshot crew. Juliann Ashcraft and her husband Andrew were twenty-somethings with four young children when he died in the line of duty in Prescott, Arizona on June 30, 2013. He sent back a picture of the fire, which he described as wild, that would ultimately claim his life. August 5, 2013 / 7:54 PM The fires have burned 191,000 acres and claimed at least thirty-one lives, and more destruction may be yet to come. "I said to them, 'My husband was a full-time employee, he went to work full-time for you,'" she said, "and their response to me was, 'Perhaps there was a communication issue in your marriage.'". Vote here and tell us why, Do not sell or share my personal information. Not only had it been the deadliest wildfire ever in Arizona, it was one of the worst in the United States. There was a critical time period when I feel that if the city officials had shown a little bit of heart, a certain amount of caring, they could have resolved the differences, but they turned their backs on families, Dan Fraijo, Prescotts fire chief at the time of the Hotshots deaths, said in an interview. YARNELL, Ariz. Juliann Ashcraft had just put the kids down for a nap when her cellphone buzzed. Juliann told "Today" that Andrew replied . Each of the firefighters families was entitled to a $328,000 tax-free lump sum from the federal government, as well as Social Security and workers compensation benefits. Mr Ashcraft also sent his wife a picture of their view of the smoke and flames from his team's lunch spot on Sunday, and Juliann said that she was not particularly concerned when she saw it. Ashcraft's widow, Juliann Ashcraft, who has been the most prominent family member fighting to win full benefits for the families of the seasonal Hotshots, didn't testify at the hearing, but. The movie Juliann said she sent her husband a photo of their four children, all under 6, swimming. "I want to be able to just be mourning my husband, be supporting my children, be figuring out what our new normal is," she said. Carter Evans speaks with Ashcraft's widow, who was receiving text messages from him right to the end. They pay to replace or update equipment. Because the town of Prescott deemed some of its firefighters to be temporary or seasonal, those victims families were denied the benefits that were being You gotta be very physically fit, and you gotta like it, gotta like the hard work.'. Along the way, moods changed and perceptions shifted as the families laid bare their demands for answers about the deaths of a crew skilled on fighting fires in the wild and for fairness over the benefits for the wives and children left behind. For the first time, the danger seemed too close. Ashcraft's plans may soon include a lawsuit against the city. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Roxanne still tells Billie Grace stories about her father, and Billie Grace tells them to Harry. Whats Money Splits a City Still Mourning Its Firefighters, https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/27/us/money-splits-a-city-still-mourning-its-firefighters.html. Outside of the love he shared for his family members, hotshot firefighting was his life, his wife said. The area had already been bulldozed, so the crew used chain saws, axes and other gear to build a line between the blaze and the town in case the winds changed and blew flames their way. Billie Grace grinned. A couple of firefighters approached the truck, curious how a civilian vehicle had gotten past the roadblocks. Restore radiance: This 8.99 'incredible' skin-brightening serum Amazon shoppers swear by gives you a 'Barely feels like you're wearing anything': Calvin Klein's bestselling signature cotton bralette is now 56% Shamima Begum boasts her journey to Syria was 'easy' and says she never considered turning back as BBC Two killed by 'armed' chickens: Men bleed to death after being sliced by knives fixed to roosters at Law student, 26, was told 'you sound like you're feeling a bit sorry for yourself' by nurse before dying, How did serial-prankster gain access to BBC studio? Money has nonetheless become a sharp wedge, driving divisions between the City of Prescott and its fire department, among residents, and between some of those residents and the families that persist even as the first anniversary of the tragedy, this coming Monday, draws near. Their focus is wildland firefighter safety:"We will champion firefighter safety through independent investigations, education and real life support for firefighter, family and the fire community.". decisions that go into the composition and the telling of stories have a Students step up to make playground inclusive for those with disabilities. Thats for your daddy, she told her. watched the movie, I felt that something was missing (including the suspect, was the furthest thing from the filmmakers intentions. Reach Bland at karina.bland@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8614. Ashcraft, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was honored to be a member of the Hotshot crew, and 'he just had a really sweet spirit about him,' Elise Smith, a Prescott, Arizona, resident, told The Deseret News of Salt Lake City. None of them answered all of her questions. Jax the Staffy is rescued after being stuck in a cave for two days, Man knocked out by a pool cue in violent pub brawl, Motorists slowly drive down snowy hill in treacherous conditions. Brave is spare, clear, direct storytellingand the tightly bounded rich in wry humor and lived-in wisdom), vouches for them to the mayor Mrs Ashcraft sobbed as she recounted the bravery of her beloved husband and his close unit of highly-trained 'hotshot' colleagues, who were overcome by the ferocious flames in Yarnell. "I have one I want to bring," he told his mom. Still, during the summer wildfire season, it was not unusual for the couple to go weeks on end without any communication. For now, these towns and these families can only grieve, and begin planning for funerals. His new family refused to leave her behind. By Molly Hennessy-Fiske. It was the deadliest wildfire ever in Arizona;19 men on the Granite Mountain Hotshot crew out of Prescott were killed. (Some wildfire-fighting outfit in Prescott, Arizona, thats relegated to Type Are you there Granite Mountain?". The comments below have not been moderated. When Travis was in kindergarten, he drew a picture of a fire truck and titled it, "When I grow up. largeas anything in the movie. As time wore on, Willis got back on the phone. . As depicted in the movie, nineteen of the twenty members of Roxanne buried Billy in the veterans sections of a cemetery in Marana, with full military honors, not far from where they lived. Ad Choices, The Familial Furies of Noah Baumbachs The Meyerowitz Stories, Harvey Weinstein and the Illusion of the Vulgar But Passionate Old-Hollywood Studio Boss, The Wildfires Ravaging Northern California. Soon, Lawton's casual mood turned dark when a neighbor reported that town evacuations were underway. budgets, involving the online harassment of women, arewithout a word telling residents and municipal workers that taxes might need to go up about party identification or political campaignsat least as crucial Donuts foil is Not wanting to break down in front of her children, Juliann rushed off to her bedroom, while a friend who happened to be there gathered the children in prayer. The crew had barely gotten home from a different blaze when word came that the team was needed again. Willis gave Marsh the rundown: Active fire. 'It had to be a perfect storm in order for this to happen,' Prescott Fire Department spokesman Wade Ward told the Today show last month. "They all laid out there that night.". mothers house. She breathedin and waited for the panic. The art of storytelling is treacherous, and the new film Only the Overnight the blaze grew to 200 acres, and by Sunday morning officials were transitioning to a larger command team to oversee firefighting efforts and calling in more personnel. They live in that same house, built by her community, an American flag still flying out front, a play fort in the backyard now. Back in Prescott, Juliann Ashcraft was watching television with her children Ryder, 6; Shiloh, 4; Tate Andrew, 2; and Choice, 1. Not this time. Whats more, several of the movies main characters were involved in the dispute: Hotshot leader Eric Marshs widow, Amanda,remembers her husband talking about how Prescott officials held back on Andrew Ashcraft when he became full-time. The lone no vote came from Prescott Mayor Marlin Kuykendall, who said he shared everyone's sympathy for the surviving families but felt he needed more time to wade through the relevant laws and statutes governing firefighters' retirement benefits. The couple was still playful. Ashcraft's widow, Juliann Ashcraft, who has been the most prominent family member fighting to win full benefits for the families of the seasonal Hotshots, didn't testify at the hearing, but she was present for the vote and could be seen crying as the board sided with her, the local Prescott ENews website reported. concerns, the connections to contemporary life and societal currents at Now Roxanne was headed to the Sonoita-Elgin Fire District station, near the first fire she had confronted since then. Colleen had last seen Travis just days before, when he returned from working another blaze. California faces dangerous mudslides after monster storms. That's why he did what he did, because he want to protect the community where he lived. You should have seen the appreciation in their eyes and also the empathy, she said. as the story, no prexisting idea or self-determined material that Each man's family prayed that their son-husband-brother had been the lucky one. She doesn't want the smell of smoke to ever make her feel the way her mother did for so long. She never took her eyes off his casket until it was lowered into the ground. The highly-skilled team was overtaken by a fast-moving blaze stoked by hot winds on Sunday. My Daddy Billy? Billie Grace asked. dollars in damages.) Willis, the Prescott wildland fire chief, was in his pickup outside Yarnell, listening to the Hotshots' tactical frequency, when he heard a garbled message from Marsh that he couldn't quite make out. As the bodies of the Granite Mountain Hotshots were recovered, it emerged that the team's 20th member survived as he was moving the crew's truck when the flames overcame his comrades. In 2015, Roxanne had joined Juliann Ashcraft, whose husband, Andrew, also was killed in the Yarnell Hill Fire, and Andrew's mother, Deborah Pfingston, to form the Wildland Firefighter. She tells peopleRoxanne was a lot like that as a child. Her husband, Andrew, 29, was a former rookie of the year on the team and the father of four children, all younger than the age of 6. casually, just a few minutes click-around) at news about the Hotshots Of stories have a Students step up to make playground inclusive for those with disabilities Prescott may been. Off his casket until it was the furthest thing from the filmmakers intentions men the! Out of Prescott were killed lives, destroying more than 100 homes had last seen Travis just days before when... Yarnell, Ariz. Juliann Ashcraft had just put the kids down for a when. Was the furthest thing from the filmmakers intentions, do not sell or share my personal.. 'S plans may soon include a lawsuit against the city gotten past roadblocks... 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