Sonoma County Sheriff’s helicopter Henry-1 made a daring rescue Friday evening near the Woodward Fire that’s burning southwest of Olema in Marin County. In a long-line rescue, the Henry-1 crew were able to rescue two Marin County firefighters who became trapped by the fire on the ridgeline and were unable to escape the area due to the advancing flames.
Around 8:15 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21, the Marin County Fire Department requested Henry-1, the only helicopter in the region capable of conducting a vertical reference long line rescue at night, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff.
A long line rescue is when a tactical flight officer (TFO) attaches themself to a 100-foot line, drops down to an area, and secures the individual with a Bauman Bag rescue device, a jacket that attaches to the long line that you can clip into.
The two firefighters were spotted 75 yards away from the advancing flames and with strong wind gusts being generated from the fire, Henry-1 landed about a mile away from the firefighters’ location.
“Upon arriving at the firefighter’s location, the TFO placed a Bauman Bag rescue device on one of the firefighters and a Horse Collar rescue device on the other,” the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a post to its Facebook page. “In this instance, Henry-1 was able to lift three people, the TFO and both Firefighters, simultaneously to safety.”
In a helmet cam video of the rescue posted on the sheriff’s Facebook page, the firefighters say “Thank you for coming,” while getting attached to the long line with flames clearly visible in the distance.
“Last night we had a rescue with our Henry-1 helicopter in Marin County on another fire and it’s simply an example of the dangerousness of these fires and the quickly changing conditions,” Sonoma County Sheriff Chief Mark Essick said during a Saturday CalFire press conference. “Had it not been for that helicopter those firefighters would certainly have perished, so that’s a quick example that even public safety personnel are facing extreme danger with fires that can quickly change direction under changing conditions.”
According to the sheriff’s office the two firefighters are doing well and are in good spirits.
