Anniversary of firefighter's death rouses safety discussion - KOTA Territory News

Anniversary of firefighter's death rouses safety discussion

Remembrances Friday and Saturday, as well as physical memorials planned for this fall, honor the memory and sacrifice of 23-year-old Trampus Haskvitz, who died fighting the Coal Canyon fire a year ago Saturday.
 
The anniversary of the tragedy brings sorrow, but it also brings safety concerns back to the surface, especially in the midst of such a destructive fire season.
 
South Dakota State Wildland Fire leaders say Haskvitz's death gave the agency a "more passionate drive for safety."

A key part of that is slowing down fire response to address the danger before it's too late.

Another critical piece of fire safety is combining hands-on experience with classroom education.

In his fifth season with the agency, Trampus had that experience, and it's hard to know if more would have made a difference.
 
"When wind and the terrain lined up a certain way that afternoon, the fire behavior really got intense and things happened real fast in short order," said Wildland Fire assistant chief of operations Jim Strain.
 
A report released in May found no human error caused Haskvitz's death, but cited "unexpected combinations of normal human variability" as a contributing factor.