Zigzag IHC History

The Zigzag Ranger District has been home base to an established Interagency crew since 1977. However, Don Vandenburg led a Trails and Fire crew in the '60s - and from 1972 to 1977 Lee Englesbey had a Regional crew. Roddy Bowman became the superintendent of the Zigzag Inter-Regional Crew in 1977, and crewmember Paul Gleason took over in 1979. Gleason remained superintendent until 1991, when crewmember Gina Papke became the first woman superintendent of a hotshot crew. In June of 2001 Diego Mendiola became superintendent of the Zigzag Hotshots.

Zigzag IHC is a fully equipped and self-sufficient crew established chiefly for wildland fire protection. As an interagency crew, we are available to travel the full extent of the U.S. and are also available for international dispatch. We have fought fire from California to New York, from Ontario to Alberta. Because of our level of organization and extensively trained personnel, we are also considered a resource available for non-fire disaster assistance, including earthquakes, hurricanes, and flood relief.

Below is a compilation of the number of days our crew spent out in the field, dating from 1991. Perhaps this list best illustrates the potential time crewmembers spend away from home.