Incident Name: California Fire, Riverside Ranger Unit, CA
Date: 06/27/90, approximately 1440 hrs; Victor Ferrera died 6/27/1990 or 28th; Aaron Perry died 7/7/1990
Personnel: 2 Lives Lost
Ages:
Agency/Organization: California Department of Corrections under contract with California Department of Forestry (Now Cal Fire)
Position: CA State Fire Crew Members
Summary:
Aaron Perry, 22, Firefighter
Victor Ferrara, 22, Firefighter
On June 27, the California Fire — that was burning near Hemet, Riverside Ranger Unit — over ran a crew that was attempting to backfire a handline. The fire was burning on moderate to steep slopes, in light vegetation during shifting winds and extreme temperatures. Ferrara and Perry were members of the CDF Bautista Crew 3, they received burn injuries to which they succumbed, Ferrara on the same day or shortly thereafter and Perry 10 days later. The balance of the 14 fire crew members received varying degrees of injury.
Maps
Burnover Location
{mosmap lat=’33.696165’|lon=’-117.024997’|marker=’0’|text=’Burnover Location’}
Reports, Documentation, Lessons Learned
- Historical Wildland Firefighter Fatalities 1910-1996 (page 10): From NWCG (616 K pdf) (or scroll down to 1990: “California Fire, Riverside RU”.
- Aaron’s and Victor’s names and death date are included in the USFA Firefighter Fatality Retrospective Study, published April 2002 (2,888 K pdf)
- Preliminary Investigation: Green Sheet (1.7 MB pdf) (If it doesn’t open, download to make it viewable, then save.)
- Accident Investigation: Supporting Documemts (1.6 MB pdf)
- CDF (now Cal Fire): “California Fire” Report (2.0 MB pdf)
- California Death Index: Victor Ferrara | Aaron Perry
Return to top
Wildlandfire.com Links:
Media Articles and Reports.
Photos, Videos, & Tributes
- USFA Database: Aaron Perry | Victor Ferrara; these firefighters are also honored at the National Firefighters Memorial in Emmitsburg, MD.
- Billion Graves: Victor Ferrara buried in Loma Vista Memorial Park, Fullerton, CA, United States
Contributors to this article: Mellie
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