Community gathers in western Colorado to honor the sacrifice of 3 firefighters killed while battling wildfire

A memorial service was held over the weekend in western Colorado for three firefighters who were killed late last month battling a wildfire.

Friends, family, firefighting teams and community members came to Sunday's ceremony in Grand Junction to honor the lives of Emily Barker, Nick Hutcherson and Sydney Watson. They were members of a Helitack crew that sometimes drops into remote areas by helicopters.

The three were killed on June 27 when they were fighting the fire that eventually became the Snyder Fire, which is located in both Utah and Colorado. It was initially the Knowles Fire. Two other firefighters were also seriously injured when they were all overcome by an event known as a burnover. They had deployed emergency protective shelters, which are considered a last resort for firefighters when there is no other way out.

"They showed up to make order out of chaos day after day with purpose, dedication and heart," U.S. Wildland Fire Service Chief Brian Fennessy said on Sunday.

Fennessy, the Wildland Fire Service chief, said that "the weight of this tragedy is felt way beyond our wildland fire community."

Photos of the firefighters were set up on the stage at the memorial service alongside flowers and flags.

They worked jobs that require courage, selflessness, strength and heart, said Sarah Fisher, the U.S. Forest Service's deputy chief for fire and aviation management.

"The work demands long days, heavy burdens and quiet acts of bravery," she said. "We will remember them, we will honor their legacy and we will carry their light forward."

Barker, Hutcherson and Watson were remembered as courageous public servants who left a lasting impact on the communities where they worked.

Barker, 38, from Clinton Township, Michigan, was fun-loving, dog-loving and a dedicated fire professional. She liked hiking, skiing, dirt biking and playing hockey. A friend and former roommate, Sarah Brubeck Schnurbusch, said she had "so much spirit" and that people around her always strived to be a better person by her presence.

"I've never seen someone so excited to go to work," Brubeck Schnurbusch said. She added that her friend helped pave the way for many women in the industry.

Barker was a trailblazer, first working as a teacher "shaping young lives," Fennessy said.

"She didn't just live in wild places, she helped to shape them, care for them and make them better," he said.

Hutcherson, 27, was from Glendale, Arizona. He served in the U.S. Navy and had plans to become a physical therapy doctor, according to the Kaibab National Forest in northern Arizona where he was assigned. He was also an active member of the Northern Arizona Deaf and American Sign Language community.

Fennessy said he "embodied the spirit of public service."

Hutcherson was a dedicated practitioner of Muay Thai martial arts who trained in Flagstaff. His favorite saying was "easy day," Fennessy said, "because Nick had an uncommon ability to face hard things with optimism, humility and a smile." 

Watson, 27, was from Warrior, Alabama, and a graduate of the University of Tennessee Southern, where she was a pitcher on the softball team, the university said.

In 2023, she participated in a program in North Carolina organized by the Women-in-Fire Prescribed Fire Training Exchanges, the group said. In her application, she said she wanted to see more women on the fire line and to learn from other women in the field, the university said.

"From the time she was very young, she knew she wanted to be a firefighter someday," Fennessy said.

"I have no doubt she inspired many young women to become a firefighter," he said.

The two firefighters who suffered burn injuries and are still recovering have not been identified. The Snyder Fire now almost entirely contained.