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U.S. NEWS Monday 15 July 2019

Agencies boost efforts to stop wildland firefighter suicides

By KEITH RIDLER ing work hours, and fami- position, and everybody re-
Associated Press lies don’t always release a spected that.”
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Shane cause of death. Friends and family say Hur-
Del Grosso spent some 30 But Gardetto said the wild- ricane Katrina might have
summers crossing smoke- land firefighting community taken the most out of Del
shrouded mountains and is small, “and word spreads Grosso.
forests to fight increasingly quickly.” Anecdotal reports He told them it was the
devastating wildfires in the suggest many of the sui- worst disaster he’d ever
U.S. West. cides are happening out- been assigned, but left out
Toward the end, his skills side the wildfire season. A the details. Nearly 2,000
and experience propelled month ago, she said, a U.S. people died in the 2005
him to lead a federal Forest Service firefighter hurricane and its after-
multi-agency team that based in the U.S. Southwest math, and parts of New Or-
responded to large-scale killed himself. And she said leans were destroyed.
national disasters. On several suicides occurred in Del Grosso is one of the
some days he directed a Idaho in 2017. One of those highest-ranking firefighters
thousand firefighters and was a Boise-based U.S. Bu- to have his name placed In this April, 2016 photo, Stacey Chaney and her brother Shane
helped coordinate aircraft reau of Land Management on a memorial stone at the Del Grosso enjoy a moment together at a youth baseball game
attacks on massive blazes. smokejumper, a firefighter Wildland Firefighters Monu- in Hagerstown, Md., shortly before Del Grosso committed suicide
But then came the long off- who jumps from airplanes. ment at the federally man- at age 50.
season lacking the shared- Reasons for the rise are un- aged fire center in Idaho. Associated Press
risk camaraderie. Isolation clear, though some cite The monument honors That Del Grosso’s name Bill Arsenault, a wildland
closed in, his family said, longer and tougher wildfire some 400 firefighters killed was included is recognition firefighter and paramedic
along with marital prob- seasons and an increase by flames, falling trees, of some of the challenges with the Idaho Falls Fire De-
lems that can be exacer- in the number of wildland vehicle mishaps, airplane wildland firefighters face partment in southeastern
bated by first-responder firefighters who previously crashes and heart attacks. away from fire lines, said Idaho.q
jobs that require missed served in the military and
family events and birth- were already dealing with
days. Del Grosso, 50, killed post-traumatic stress.
himself May 9, 2016, not In the past several years,
long before the start of an- the National Interagency
other wildfire season. Fire Center has bolstered
“I always thought that a program that teaches
you’d see it coming, but I coping skills and offers
guess you don’t,” said his one-on-one crisis interven-
best friend, Noel Matson, tion to firefighters dealing
who worked and fought with trauma and other is-
wildfires out of the same sues. Federal agencies also
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have increased efforts to
office in Huron, South Da- make firefighters aware
kota, as Del Grosso. “It was that help is available.
maybe that male bravado It’s unclear what kind of
firefighter thing where you help Del Grosso was receiv-
don’t talk about what’s ing. His family learned after
bothering you.” his death that he’d been
Federal officials at the diagnosed with PTSD.
National Interagency “Obviously he couldn’t es-
Fire Center in Boise have cape whatever demons
started making efforts to were haunting him. And
change that mindset af- that breaks your heart,”
ter noticing an increase in said his older sister, Stacey
wildland firefighter suicides Chaney. Throughout Del
in recent years. Grosso’s career with dif-
“It’s not a profession where ferent agencies, his family
people want to reach out tracked news reports hop-
for help because they ing to get a glimpse of him
are the help,” said Jes- at work. It was easier after
sica Gardetto, a fire center he rose through the ranks to
spokeswoman and former become an incident com-
wildland firefighter. “The mander, a job in which he
federal agencies have re- often spoke at news con-
alized, whether it’s suicidal ferences.
tendencies or just overall He also sent thousands of
mental health, it’s a re- wildland firefighters into
source that needs to be burning forests, and they
available — even out on trusted him to get them out
the fire lines.” again. “He relished his role
No figures on wildland fire- as incident commander,”
fighter suicides are avail- said Matson, Del Grosso’s
able because federal friend and colleague. “He
agencies often track only worked well with people
fatalities that occur dur- and knew just about every