JORDAN, Montana — Five federal firefighters remain hospitalized in stable condition after sustaining burn injuries when swirling winds blew a lightning-caused wildfire back on them in eastern Montana on Thursday.
The five were building a defensive line at the Devil’s Creek Fire in Garfield County when the weather shifted. Forest Service spokeswoman Punky Moore says two Forest Service firefighters based at the Quemado Ranger District at New Mexico’s Gila National Forest were in stable condition and recovering at an undisclosed location.
Forest Service spokesman Kari Cobb says three U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service crew members based in North Dakota also were in stable condition and recovering at an undisclosed burn center.