
In Part One of my ongoing investigation into the early response to the Caldor Fire, we were introduced to Pioneer Fire District Chief, Mark Matthews. Chief Matthews was one of the first, if not the first, to arrive on scene to the then-small brush fire in the Middle Fork of the Cosumnes River drainage. He has over 40 years of experience in firefighting and has led the Pioneer Fire District since 2018.
Matthews worked for 25 years fighting fires in Oregon. In 2014 he was asked to move to Palominas in Conchise County, Arizona to become the department’s chief there. According to Matthews, he was able to “turn around” the Palominos Fire Department by balancing the budget, improving public relations, and streamlining firefighter training. An article in a local newspaper quotes him as being “Very proud of what we have been able to accomplish as a district.”
On January 12, 2017 several 911 calls began coming into Conchise County. All were reporting brush fires in and around Palominas. In one hour, Palominas firefighters were dispatched to five brush fires alone. All of the fires were less than a half acre in size and were quickly extinguished thanks to a light wind and high moister content of the vegetation. Firefighters were immediately suspicious of how the fires may have started. Soon, the Conchise County Sheriff’s Department opened their own investigation in to the Palominas brush fires.
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