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Michael
Hallenbeck, of the Sierra foothill community of Shingle Springs,
was killed on Saturday as he and his firefighting crew tackled a
blaze near Lake Tahoe in Northern California, the U.S. Forest
Service said on Sunday.
Dave Ruhl, 38, died last month fighting another Northern
California fire.
"The grief we are feeling at the sudden loss of two of our
firefighters, Dave Ruhl ... on the Modoc National Forest and now
Mike Hallenbeck on the Basin, reminds us of the sacrifices these
men and women make every day,” U.S. Forest Service Pacific
Southwest Regional Forester Randy Moore said in a statement.
On Sunday, family members buried Ruhl, a married father of two
from South Dakota, who died of smoke inhalation and carbon
monoxide poisoning battling the Frog Fire in the Modoc National
Forest on July 31.
Erin Ruhl, who survives him along with two children, said the
38-year-old was an active outdoorsman.
"He loved to hunt, ski, bike and hike," she said in a statement
released by the Forest Service. "He made lasting friends from
all over and had an awesome sense of humor."
The fire that killed Hallenbeck was one of several dozen that
broke out Saturday after lightning strikes in Northern
California forests, the Forest Service said.
Forest Service spokeswoman Lisa Herron said that Hallenbeck died
after he was hit by a falling tree and that the agency was
investigating the incident.
Last week, California Governor Jerry Brown, a Democrat, said
prolonged drought and higher temperatures made wildfire an
ever-greater danger in California. In an open letter to
Republican presidential hopefuls in advance of last week's
televised debate, he demanded to know what they would do to
combat climate change.
(Editing by Susan Heavey)
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