Remembering those who fought the Sundance Fire of 1967

Sundance Mountain is the site of a horrific lightning caused wildfire that ignited in August 1967, and claimed two lives: Luther Rodarte of Santa Maria, Calif., and Lee Collins of Thompson Falls, Mont. Both men perished in the blaze of The Sundance on Sept. 1, 1967.

Fifty years later, commemoration programs are being held in honor of these two wildfire firefighters. On Aug. 23, 2017 Priest Lake Museum will host a program at the Priest Lake Elementary School starting at 7 p.m. On Saturday, Aug. 26 the Boundary County Museum will host its program remembering both Trapper Peak and Sundance Fires at 2 p.m. On Sept. 2, the families of Luther Rodarte and Lee Collins will join others for a memorial at the Upper Pack River Bridge starting at 10 a.m.

T-Shirts can be purchased through IDL in Bonners Ferry and the proceeds will help with the cost of a new marker which will be placed on site where the men perished, and a new Interpretive Sign at the trailhead a short distance from the Pack River Bridge. There is also a Go Fund Me page established for anyone wishing to help with expenses. https://www.gofundme.com/sundancefire-50th-commemoration

At the outbreak of The Sundance, three fires were discovered on Sundance Mountain in Bonner County. Crews battled the blazes and by Aug. 15, all three fires had been extinguished. On the 20th of that month, the lookout on Sundance Mountain spotted a fourth plume of smoke. A crew was dispatched to the site and after burning two acres, by the end of the following day, it was reported out.

Thunderstorms rolled across the Idaho Panhandle on the nights of Aug. 20 and 21, and on Aug. 23 the lookout on Sundance spotted a fifth fire. Once again, firefighters were dispatched, and 35 acres and five days later, this fire was listed as “contained.” But the next day, winds blowing southwest caused that “contained 35 acre fire” to jump the fire line, and within two days, the fire had grown to 3,500 acres and was threatening the town of Coolin. Within just two miles of the town, a sudden fiery explosion blew the fire into a blazing inferno, and evacuation alerts were issued.

At this same time, the Trapper Peak Fire was burning out of control in Boundary County as locals watched clouds of thick gray smoke billowing up, burning debris blowing and falling, and flames destroying magnificent trees. Officials were watching and monitoring closely wondering if the winds would merge the two great fires into a single blaze. At this time, The Sundance was the largest blaze on the continent, and burned nearly 56,000 acres before being tamed.

A young man named Randy Langston, the lookout on Roman Nose, narrowly escaped with his life as the fire crested the mountain, burning its path toward his lookout. For whatever reason, the lookout was not destroyed by the fire!

These stories and many more will be highlighted in the Trapper Peak/Sundance Fires program at the Boundary County Museum this Saturday, beginning at 2 p.m. A special feature of the program will be videoed interviews from local citizens who worked the fires, watched the fires, or have memories of the fires to share. See you there!