Juliann Ashcraft's husband, Andrew, was hired as a member of the Granite Mountain Hotshots crew as a temporary worker in 2011 and was named rookie of the year. That is the way I saw each and every one of them, she said. He sent back a picture of the fire, which he described as wild, that would ultimately claim his life. They made their way there on back roads. When Roxanne introduced herself to the firefighters at the station, she told them that her husband had been one of the 19 hotshots killed in the Yarnell fire. News: Juliann Ashcraft, pictured right, learned of her husband's death while watching the news, Smiles: The loving couple had four children together, and Mrs Ashcraft is battling to kept afloat as bills mount, Doting dad: Ashcraft, pictured, with two of his four kids, was a hero, 'They died heroes,' she told azcentral.com as she wept. Others were found outside them. Hot shot crews are elite firefighters who often hike for miles into the wilderness with chain saws and backpacks filled with heavy gear to build lines of protection between people and fires. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. 'And we'll miss them. They took Billie Grace with them. The names of all 19 members of the elite firefighting crew who perished in the blaze were released late on Monday, after their bodies were retrieved from the mountain where they died. . 'We're devastated. Of course, there was no reply," she said. Elite team: A photo from April 12, 2012 shows a squad leader with the Granite Mountain Hotshots training crew members on setting up emergency fire shelters outside of Prescott, Arizona, Last hope: The firefighters deployed the emergency shelters on Sunday but died (picture from April 2012), Emergency shelter: Firefighters dig into the earth and lay in the shelters, hoping the fire will pass over them, At work: Members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots are pictured working in New Mexico last year, Experts: Members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots work on a ridge line in Mogollon, New Mexico last June, Dangerous: Firefighters spray water on a restaurant to help protect it from flames in the Glenn Ilah area, Fast-moving: The fire started with a lightning strike on Friday and spread to 2,000 acres on Sunday, Aid: The Red Cross has set up a shelter at the Yavapai College in Prescott, Arizona. Holding back tears, Juliann Ashcraft described text messages and photos she and her husband exchanged just before he died. 'And we'll miss them. It was everything to him. At the time, Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo said the 19 firefighters were a part of the city's fire department. With their deaths, the department lost 20 per cent of its members. The fire has also destroyed an estimated 200 homes, Morrison said. Read:Couple's Wedding Forced to Relocate After Chapel Is Destroyed in Deadly Wildfire. Enter your email to receive updates on our LDS Living content, 2022 LDS Living A Division of Deseret Book Company. Right now, we're in crisis. 'But he let us know that he loved us and missed us. Family photographs reveal a picture perfect family as Juliann and Andrew are seen grinning and kissing, as well as laughing along with their four young children. The incident hits close to home for Juliann Ashcraft whose husband was killed in 2013. Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. 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Juliann Ashcraft always knew her husband had a dangerous job fighting wildfires, but he was one of the elite -- a Granite Mountain Hotshot. They fought fires together. Owen, born in March, is a content baby. It's been a long year since Juliann Ashcraft learned that her husband was one of 19 firefighters killed in an Arizona wildfire. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Roxanne would take her daughter to Billys grave with flowers and his dog. Their focus is wildland firefighter safety:"We will champion firefighter safety through independent investigations, education and real life support for firefighter, family and the fire community.". the adventure of the mysterious picture summary, coda shop myanmar, what is a private savings note, scott reese nhl she's out of my league, eric church house north carolina, kelly kinicki city on a hill, jennifer riordan settlement, harriman state park dogs, outrigger . With their deaths, the department lost 20 per cent of its members. You gotta be very physically fit, and you gotta like it, gotta like the hard work.'. These men lived together. Watch Live: Closing arguments begin in double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, Intel review says "very unlikely" foreign adversary behind "Havana Syndrome", Ex-Georgia star Jalen Carter was racing in deadly crash, arrest warrants allege, Watch Live: Garland testifies amid ongoing special counsel investigations, Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students. The highly-skilled team was overtaken by a fast-moving blaze stoked by hot winds on Sunday. I was able to beat back the anxiety, she said. A crew of 600 firefighters and related personnel had been assigned to it. Officials have called the fire the worst wildland tragedy in 80 years. Your Daddy Billy came to visit you? Harry asked. Can dementia be spotted in CHILDHOOD? He responded that he wished for that too. But the city is refusing to pay Mrs Ashcraft her husband's lifetime salary and health benefits, which together are worth millions, because it insists he was among 13 of the squad who were seasonal employees rather than full-timers. Reach Bland at karina.bland@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8614. "I said to them, 'My husband was a full-time employee, he went to work full-time for you,'" she said, "and their response to me was, 'Perhaps there was a communication issue in your marriage.'". Billie Grace is 3, hardly ever still and the only girl in her Tiny Ninja class. A contagious smile, a heart of gold. Asked what probably went through his mind when he pulled out his fire shelter, Juliann Ashcraft said: "I think probably in that last moment, we have four babies. July 2, 2013, 3:05 PM. Andrew Ashcraft, 29, of Prescott, Ariz., was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and one of 19 firefighters who died battling a fire that swept through Yarnell, Ariz., on Sunday. Ashcraft, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was honored to be a member of the Hotshot crew, and 'he just had a really sweet spirit about him,' Elise Smith, a Prescott, Arizona, resident, told The Deseret News of Salt Lake City. 6 Amazon travel essentials for your next getaway, starting at $12, Juliann Ashcrafts husband, Andrew, was one of the 19 firefighters killed in Arizona on Sunday. The 29-year-old former "rookie of the year" on the elite "Hotshot" team, was a father of four, all of whom are younger than 6 years old. Fire shelters fail to protect elite fire crew from Ariz. blazeShock over loss of 19 Ariz. firefighters in wildfireLightning sparked deadly Arizona fireA look at deadly U.S. fire crew incidents, CBS News' Carter Evans, who spoke with Juliann Ashcraft, reported on "CBS This Morning": "When I spoke with Juliannshe had many questions. she told the Today show early last month as she struggled to hold back the tears. He had followed in the footsteps of his father, Mike MacKenzie (left), who was once the fire captain of Moreno Valley, California, Tragedy: Mackenzie, pictured left and right, died as the men tried to climb into emergency shelters, Killed: Travis Turbyfill, pictured with his family, also died with his team on the mountainside, Fallen: Scott Norris, pictured, was one of the 19 victims, Disbelief: David Turbyfill is comforted by his wife Shari as he mourns his son Travis Turbyfill on Monday, President Obama called the firefighters heroes and highly skilled professionals who 'put themselves in harm's way to protect the lives and property of fellow citizens they would never meet.'. 'He was the most amazing man,' she said. What's the next step for she and her children? For more, click here or follow on Facebook. The fire had crept close to an area Roxanne knew well. Published: 14:36, 6 August 2013 | Updated: 22:49, 6 August 2013. The best result we found for your search is Juliann Ashcraft age 60s in Newport, WA. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Her palms grew sweaty. In memory of 19 fire fighters, it said. Mrs Ashcraft sobbed as she recounted the bravery of her beloved husband and his close unit of highly-trained 'hotshot' colleagues, who were overcome by the ferocious flames in Yarnell. Because of the dangers of the job, he would always tell us that he loved us. Juliann Ashcraft decided to leave Prescott altogether to spare her four children the discomfort of whispers and glares. She worried how she would react. "They were heroes to the people that they helped there. Taking Vitamin D each day could cut your chances of getting dementia, study claims. (CBS News) Among the 19 firefighters killed Sunday in Arizona was 29-year-old Andrew Ashcraft. First published on August 5, 2013 / 7:54 PM. Southwest incident team leader Clay Templin said the team and its commanders were following safety protocols, but it appears the fire's erratic nature simply overwhelmed them. Another firefighter's son lost his life; Capt. CBS News has seen paperwork showing Mr Ashcraft did infact earn a full-time salary as a firefighter for the city of Prescott. On Tuesday, Juliann Ashcraft, the widow of slain Ariz. firefighter Andrew Ashcraft, described the final text messages that she shared with her husband as he battled the Yarnell Hill Fire. The shocking treatment comes five weeks afterthe mother-of-four learned by watching the news that her firefighter husband had perished in the intense blaze that burned scores of homes to the ground. 'Quite literally, my bills are being paid by the good people of the world who are giving donations, because the city of Prescott isn't doing anything for us,' she told the TV station. IE 11 is not supported. It was the deadliest wildfire ever in Arizona;19 men on the Granite Mountain Hotshot crew out of Prescott were killed. Now the fire had shut down that route. They pay to replace or update equipment. Thats for your daddy, she told her. Dry grass near the communities of Yarnell and Glen Isla fed the fast-moving blaze. Roxanne had married Billy in 2008, but they had known each other since high school. 'He was the most amazing man,' she said. 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', Engulfed: 19 firefighters died as the wildfire spread near the Arizona town of Yarnell, Evacuation: Hundreds of residents were forced to flee their homes, Death toll: The Yarnell wildfire is the deadliest wildfire involving firefighters in the U.S. for at least 30 years, Heartbroken: Prescott Fire Chief Dan Fraijo said the firefighters were 'the people you'll ever meet'. Juliann Ashcraft and her husband Andrew were twenty-somethings with four young children when he died in the line of duty in Prescott, Arizona on June 30, 2013. The elite team, Ashcraft said, were like a family. Juliann Ashcraft, an LDS wife and mother, appeared on the "Today" show and CBS news Tuesday morning to discuss her husband, who has been hailed as a hero. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Prescott, which is more than 30 miles northeast of Yarnell, is one of the only cities in the United States that has a hot shot fire crew, Fraijo said. Juliann Ashcraft is looking forward to July 1, the day after the one-year anniversary of the wildfire disaster that took the lives of her husband Andrew and 18 other members of the Granite. They were invincible. The National Fire Protection Association had previously listed the deadliest wildland fire involving firefighters as the 1994 Storm King Fire near Glenwood Springs, Colorado, which killed 14 firefighters who were overtaken by a sudden explosion of flames. Juliann Ashcraft's husband, Andrew, was one of the 19 firefighters killed in Arizona on Sunday. I wanted to take her so she could have a positive outlook on fire instead of a negative one, Roxanne said. "It was everything to him. Because even though Billie Grace never got to meet her father, Roxanne wants her to remember him. She felt like she wanted to do something to help. Juliann Ashcraft, the widow of Andrew Ashcraft, speaks during an interview at her home in Queen Creek, Arizona. The comments below have not been moderated. That's what I want people to know. Blue Ridge had helped battle the blaze that killed Billy and the hotshot crew. EXCLUSIVE: Lanzarote sticks to its guns and insists it WILL limit tourists and move away from relying on Jeremy Clarkson is axed as Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? But Mrs Ashcraft, still mourning the loss of her 29-year-old hero, is desperate for help, as the costs associated with bringing up four children mount. He was a father of four young children. Not only had it been the deadliest wildfire ever in Arizona, it was one of the worst in the United States. Juliann Ashcraft, wife of Granite Mountain Hotshot Andrew Ashcraft, gave a beautiful talk about her family's gratitude journey after Andrew's death. To learn more about Only The Brave and how you can support the wildland firefighter communities through the Granite Mountain Fund, click here. CBS News obtained paperwork that shows Ashcraft did earn a full-time salary. That doesnt change, no matter what happens. My Daddy Billy? Billie Grace asked. Other firefighters who have been identified include the Hotshots superintendent Eric Marsh, 22-year-old Wade Parker and father-of-four Andrew Ashcraft. Juliann Ashcraft's husband, Andrew, was one of 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots firefighters who lost their lives when a fire they were battling suddenly changed direction and engulfed them. Not this time. He was one of 19 firefighters who died a year ago in the Yarnell Hill Fire in Arizona. She and Billy used to go to nearby Patagonia often, to hike and fish, taking State Highway 83. The crew killed in the blaze had worked on other wildfires in recent weeks in New Mexico and Arizona, Fraijo said. That's why he did what he did, because he want to protect the community where he lived. His wife says he always thought of others before himself. They focus on safety for wildland firefighters, lobbying for policy changes and independent investigations. ', Worry: Alora Slemboski consoles Nancy Myers, who fears she lost her home, outside the Red Cross Shelter, Remembrance: Volunteer citizen patrol officer Seymour Petrovsky stands guard at the gate, Overwhelmed: Local resident Bob Hoskovec says a prayer as he kneels outside the gate on Monday, Mourning: Toby Schultz pauses after laying flowers at the gate of the Granite Mountain Hot Shot Crew fire station in Prescott, Arizona on Monday morning. . In fact, he was one of 19 wildland firefighters who died in the line of duty that day, with just one member of the crew surviving. Play it now! They used to work with your Daddy Billy.. 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