Wildland Firefighter Guardian Institute 2.97

On June 30, 2013 Nineteen Wildland Firefighters from the Granite Mountain Hotshot Crew located in Prescott, Arizona died when they were entrapped in a canyon in Yarnell, Arizona at the Yarnell Hill Fire.

From this great loss of life three women, Juliann Ashcraft, Deborah Pfingston, and Roxanne Warneke worked together to form the Wildland Firefighter Guardian Institute. Juliann lost her husband, Andrew Ashcraft, Deborah Pfingston lost her son, Andrew Ashcraft, and Roxanne Warneke lost her husband, William “Billy” Warneke in the Yarnell Hill Fire. Through their grief the three women dedicated themselves into learning about Wildland Firefighting, delved into discovering what truly happened to the Granite Mountain Hotshots that led to their deaths, and committed themselves to protecting the safety of Wildland Firefighters so that another preventable tragedy like the Yarnell Hill Fire does not occur again.