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A Toivola native has been killed while fighting a wildfire in Oregon.
Officials with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department say 27-year-old Collin Hagan was working with a crew battling the Big Swamp Fire near Oakridge. That’s about 45 miles southeast of Eugene, near the Willamette River in the western part of the state.
Around 12:30 Wednesday afternoon, Hagan was hit by a falling tree. Air medical services were dispatched, but were unable to save him. His body was flown to Roseburg Regional Airport. There, the sheriff’s department says firefighters from the Bureau of Land Management, United States Forest Service, Roseburg Fire Department and Douglas County Fire District #2 stood together to honor Hagan as his body arrived, and then provided an honor escort to the funeral home.
Sheriff John Hanlin called it “a sad day in public safety,” and extended his condolences to Hagan’s family, friends and co-workers.
Hagan was a member of the Craig Interagency Hotshot Crew based out of Craig, Colorado.
The Big Swamp fire was ignited by a lightning strike on August 1.
