GRAND JUNCTION, Colorado — Communities across the U.S. are continuing to mourn the loss of three firefighters killed on June 27 while battling a wildfire near the Utah and Colorado border, and officials with the U.S. Wildland Fire Service has now announced a memorial for the fallen this weekend.
The U.S. Forest Service and Interior Department identified the firefighters killed as Emily Barker, 38, of Clinton Township, Michigan; Nick Hutcherson, 27, of Glendale, Arizona; and Sydney Watson, 26, of Warrior, Alabama.
Two others also sustained burn injuries during the incident.
This weekend the Knowles Fire Memorial will be held from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., on Sunday, at the Amphitheater at Las Colonias Park in Grand Junction, Colorado.
A public livestream of the memorial service will also take place. You can watch here.
The fallen firefighters were part of a specialized crew that goes into remote areas by helicopter to quickly put out new and rapidly expanding wildfires.
With more than two dozen large fires burning, almost 8,000 wildland firefighters and dozens of firefighting helicopters have been deployed. About half the largest blazes are in Alaska while the rest are mostly in Western states.
