BLM employees win Valor Award for actions during Wetmore Fire

Bureau of Land Management Royal Gorge Field Office employees Jonathan Brewer and Tyler Webb were honored last week at the 70th Honor Awards Convocation of the Department of the Interior at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Valor Award is the highest award given by the Department of Interior and recognizes employees who have demonstrated unusual courage involving a high degree of personal risk in the face of danger. Firefighters Brewer and Webb were assisting local law enforcement personnel in evacuating residents in the path of the advancing Wetmore Fire in October 2012. The Wetmore Fire was a fast-moving, wind-driven fire that consumed about 1,800 acres and 14 residences during the first afternoon and evening of initial attack. Brewer and Webb were told of civilians that were in the path of the quickly advancing Wetmore Fire. They made the decision to drive through smoke toward the fire so they could locate the civilians. By the time they reached the civilians, it was too dangerous to exit, so Brewer and Webb located a safe zone to gather until the danger passed. There were two different waves of flames, wind and smoke that came over the group. Because of good situational awareness, both employees were able to remove themselves along with civilians and vehicles from what could have been a tragic outcome...more