Year after firefighter deaths, town moves forward

Published 10:13 am Friday, June 27, 2014

PRESCOTT, Ariz. — Reminders of the Granite Mountain Hotshots are spread throughout Station 7.

Around the crew’s former firehouse, their pictures surround a quilt hanging on the wall, their names are inscribed on a wooden table and the vehicles they drove to their final wildfire sit parked in the garage, with slips of paper marking their seat assignments.

Over the past year, the station in Prescott has become a source of solace and heartache.

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People have parked their cars outside, sharing stories of loss and pride in the 19 Hotshots who died on June 30, 2013, in the deadliest day for U.S. fire crews since 9/11. Families have sunk into the seats of the crew’s vehicles, imagining the final ride.

The tragedy has seen the community go from an outpouring of support in the days after the deaths to animosity over survivors’ benefits to blaming fire officials for mismanaging the blaze.