After two weeks on the unforgiving California fire lines, the cool, gray skies of Washington welcomed firefighters home to Snohomish County.
"It feels good," said Corey Palmer. "Nice and cool."
Palmer is one of 19 Snohomish County firefighters just back from the Mendocino Complex fire. He and his crew were a strike force deployed to protect homes.
They didn't lose a single structure, but it was far from easy.
"It can be scary at times. This is the biggest wildfire in California history," he said. "You're working with agencies you've never worked with before in a place you're not familiar with. It's pretty intimidating."
At one point, the crew cut a fire line 1,400 feet up a hillside. Then ran a mile-and-a-half of hose — all in 90-degree temperatures — and packing 50 pounds of gear.
"It's just incredibly hot. You're sweating all day, trying to keep those fluids in. It's a task just to stay hydrated the entire time," said Palmer.
Upon the crew's return to Snohomish County, Assistant Chief Jeremy Stocker debriefed his crew after a job well done.
At the top of everyone's mind, though, was fallen Utah firefighter Matthew Burchett.
Burchett, 42, died Monday when a tree fell on top of him.
Stocker says the death makes leaving all those other crews behind that much more difficult.
"I spoke to him just the night before he died. It makes you reflect. It makes you want to get home and squish your family harder. It also makes you feel guilty because you do get to come home and that individual doesn't."
Two more crews from Western Washington are scheduled to return home this weekend.
However, with fires continuing to rage across the west, they know it won't be long and they'll likely be called upon again to put themselves in the line of fire.
Stocker said, "Typically after being out for two weeks, we'll get a few days rest and then a lot of us will be right back out on the fire lines again."
