The fire was first spotted on July 2, but crews were not dispatched to the scene until July 5 . A day after that, a dry cold front with winds up to 45 mph fanned the flames through dense brush, and up the hillside, forcing firefighters to retreat. Fourteen firefighters were killed.
Subsequent investigations revealed communication gaps among firefighters and their commanders regarding the plan of attack against the fire. In addition, firefighters failed to receive relevant weather information; crew members didn't report their safety concerns to commanders or to each other; and not everyone was carrying needed equipment.
