FRESNO, Calif. – A new report from The Atlantic is taking a closer look at a deadly helicopter crash that occurred while firefighters were fighting a wildfire in Yosemite National Park this past summer.
Two pilots were killed fighting the Dome Fire in the Park on September 20, 2026. They were identified as Greg King and Ryan Cutter. The helicopter pilots were conducting water drops, using an 800-gallon bucket attached to a 200-foot-long line.
After refueling, the pilots prepared to make more water drops. A new NTSB report released on the accident says the helicopter had “problems with the water bucket” and on the third drop the aircraft plunged to the ground. The NTSB is still investigating the exact cause of the crash.
Joshua Partlow, a staff writer with The Atlantic, told KVPR’s Central Valley Daily’s, that this crash fits into a larger pattern of increased wildland fire deaths this year. So far, 17 wildland firefighters, pilots, and contractors have been killed this year, “surpassing the full-year average over the past decade,” Partlow reported. Partlow examined these deaths and their potential connection to a new “full suppression” policy issued by the Department of the Interior under the Trump Administration.
Full fire suppression is a directive to put fires out as quickly as possible. Before the policy change, Partlow says firefighters and public land managers allowed fires in remote areas to burn for fire management purposes.
“I think in recent years, a lot of land managers and firefighters have talked about how there are certain circumstances when fires are not near communities that can cause danger, it makes sense to benefit from the fire.” Partlow said.
With the changes of the new policy in place, land managers and firefighters would lose the benefit of not letting the fire keep burning and letting said fires burn forest that otherwise might be dense and overgrown.
Before the policy changed, fire management and forest conservation would be tied under the same agency, in this case overseen by the National Park Service. Now, under this new policy, the park service no longer has firefighting authority; that role has shifted to the Department of the Interior.
Health and equipment standards have changed as well with the new policy. Before, firefighters did not have respiratory protection, but now firefighters have to wear a W95 respiratory and mandatory compulsory field shower and gear cleaning directly at the fire camps.
But the increasing number of firefighters on the wildfires raised concerns about more injuries.
“People were getting injured, The Wildland Fire Service said there were six injuries. People told me about smoke inhalation and falls and bee stings that it seemed like more people were getting hurt.” Partlow said.
When the Dome Fire in Yosemite National Park broke out in September, over 1,000 personnel were working on the fire line at the height of the response, including California interagency team, hotshot crews, and National Park Service staff and 17 helicopters were in active rotation. The estimated total cost was up to $20,000,000.
Many people are disagreeing with the updated policy and have concerns about it.
“I think one of the interesting things about this reorganization is that national parks superintendents no longer make the decision on how to approach a particular fire within their boundaries.” Partlow said. “That’s something I heard from a lot of people who used to work at Yosemite saying that can be problematic because it can cause loss of local knowledge and experience.”
Listen to the full interview with Partlow here. This segment aired on Central Valley Daily on Oct. 27, 2026. If you have a story idea, email podcast@kvpr.org.
