On a sizzling August morning, as flames burned unchecked down the road, fire crews milled about at an Angeles Crest Highway ranger station. Others were parked along the pavement -- a critical line of defense -- their engines quiet and hoses slack.
It was more than an hour after first light, and some six hours after U.S. Forest Service commanders had determined that the fire required a more aggressive air attack. But the skies remained empty of water-dropping helicopters -- tankers that were readily available.
Then, after the sun had heated the hillsides above La Canada Flintridge, and as the first chopper finally began unloading on the flames, the fire gathered speed and shot over the highway, turning tall pines into torches. The last best chance to stop the blaze without significant losses vanished.
"That's what turned into the Station fire," said one firefighter who saw the flames jump the road about 8 a.m. on Aug. 27.
Drawn from interviews and records, a picture of the fateful Day 2 of the Station fire raises troubling new questions about the U.S. Forest Service's response to the blaze when it was still small and considered relatively easy to contain.
The conflagration eventually killed two Los Angeles County firefighters, destroyed about 90 dwellings and devastated one of America's most-visited national forests. The largest fire in county history, it was not fully contained until Oct. 16.
The Forest Service should have pounced on the flames as soon as light filled the sky, when the ground was cool and the winds were down, said the firefighter who was at the scene. Like others with knowledge of the operation, he requested anonymity because he is not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
"Air tankers should have been there 30 minutes before sunup," he said. "These folks knew what kind of fire they had going below the road, and they did not staff it with adequate resources. There is no excuse for that."
Although the Forest Service has acknowledged that it learned overnight it had underestimated the threat posed by the fire, witnesses said no helicopter hit the blaze until at least 90 minutes after first light. Two choppers from the city and county of Los Angeles -- crucial reinforcements -- did not reach the fire until 10 a.m., fire officials said. By then, it had multiplied many times in size.
