Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District medics and officials from other agencies worked together to rescue an injured wildland firefighter who broke his leg while fighting a fire in the Quartzville area Monday night, July 20.
According to Linn County Undersheriff Jim Yon, at at 10:10 p.m., the Sheriff’s Office received a call from the U.S. Forest Service requesting assistance from Linn County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue for the injured firefighter. Michael Lee Burri, 31, of Estacada, sustained a broken leg while working with a 21-person Mount Hood Initial Attack Fire Team that had been fighting a small fire near Road 11 off Quartzville Road.
Sweet Home paramedics initially were dispatched to the scene. Two medics hiked in approximately three miles to Burri. Once on the scene, they decided an air rescue would be the safest way to remove Burri.
Linn County Search and Rescue worked in coordination with Oregon Air National Guard to get a United States Coast Guard helicopter to the area to attempt a rescue. The Coast Guard helicopter arrived in the area at 3 a.m. As the Coast Guard helicopter attempted to land, air from the blades caused the fire to quickly stir up. The fire, along with the rough terrain, made the rescue impossible, Yon said. The Coast Guard helicopter did not attempt another rescue.
Linn County SAR had been on standby up until this point and now responded to the trailhead. They cleared a secondary landing zone for a helicopter. At daylight, a National Parks Service MD 900 helicopter, out of Redmond was successfully able to air lift Burri out. Rescuers had to use a rope and harness because the helicopter was not able to land. Burri was taken to the secondary landing area, loaded into the helicopter, and then transported to the Albany Municipal Airport. He was then transferred to an Albany Fire Department ambulance and taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Corvallis.
Linn County Sheriff’s Office had a total of 18 members from SAR involved with the operation, along with the two members from SHFAD. Other agencies involved were the U.S. Forest Service, United States Coast Guard, and the National Parks Service.