[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Page 12561]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     PROVIDING FOR AN INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION OF FOREST SERVICE 
                           FIREFIGHTER DEATHS

  Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 3971, Calendar No. 446.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 3971) to provide for an independent 
     investigation of Forest Service firefighter deaths that are 
     caused by wildfire entrapment or burnover.
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
  Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to urge the passage of this 
legislation. Roughly a year ago, about this time of night, my 
colleague, Senator Murray, and I stood before the Senate in a terrible 
moment to describe our sympathy for the deaths of four young 
firefighters: Devin Weaver, Jessica Johnson, Karen Fitzpatrick, and Tom 
Craven.
  They lost their lives fighting a forest fire that had been out of 
control, and, as we found out, these four young people were barely 
trained. They were on the job, having had training, but were new, and 
this was their first fire.
  Since that day on the Senate floor, we have had hearings, 
investigations, a lot of discussion, and what we found in the report 
from the Forest Service on the Thirtymile fire is that some of the same 
issues that had arisen in a fire, the Storm King fire, many years ago 
were the same issues that were arising again; the fact that maybe there 
were rules in place but they were not being followed.
  When the report came back to say that, sadly, the young men and women 
who perished fighting the Thirtymile fire did not have to die, it was a 
very painful moment. The fact that they did not have to die meant we 
were not really implementing the processes and procedures that needed 
to be in place.
  Tonight I am glad to say that we are taking a big step forward in 
assuring the oversight and accountability of the Forest Service, by 
making sure there is an independent investigation in the case of forest 
fire fatalities.
  This legislation will not bring back Devin Weaver, Jessica Johnson, 
Karen Fitzpatrick, or Tom Craven, but it will say that the Congress--
the House and the Senate--does believe there needs to be 
accountability, there needs to be oversight, there needs to be 
protection. There needs to be rules in place not just because we can 
point to them on a piece of paper but that they are actually being 
followed.
  So tonight, even though it has been just 1 year, I feel at least we 
can go to families and say we do believe accountability is important.
  I thank my colleague in the House, Doc Hastings, for getting this 
legislation passed as companion legislation to what we have.
  I note that the Senate did take action earlier this year. We passed 
this as an amendment as part of the farm bill, and, unfortunately, it 
did not make it through the conference process. So we are passing this 
legislation tonight, to send on to the President for his signature, in 
hopes he will sign this in fast order and help improve the process to 
make sure we have accountability in the Forest Service in this 
particular area.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the bill be read three times, 
passed, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no 
further intervening action or debate, and that any statements relating 
thereto be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (H.R. 3971) was read the third time and passed.

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