Idaho memorial service honors firefighting pilots

Two Boise Fire Department ladder trucks parked at 14th and Grove streets create an arch in front of the Linen Building, where a memorial service to celebrate the lives of air tanker pilots Todd Tompkins and Ron Chambless was held Thursday evening June 14, 2012 in Boise. A memorial service was held in Boise Thursday for 48-year-old Todd Tompkins and 40-year-old Ron Chambless. They died fighting a wildfire June 3 near the Utah-Nevada line when their air tanker hit a mountain just inside Utah.

Shawn Raecke / Idaho Statesman, AP

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Todd Tompkins’ daughter Phoebe Turner, 16, talks about fond memories of going skiing and learning to drive with her dad during a memorial service for him and fellow air tanker pilot Ron Chambless on Thursday June 14, 2012. Tompkins’ other daughter, Paige, 10, also spoke at the service at the Linen Building in Boise. The memorial service was held in Boise Thursday for 48-year-old Todd Tompkins and 40-year-old Ron Chambless who died fighting a wildfire June 3 near the Utah-Nevada line when their air tanker hit a mountain just inside Utah.

Shawn Raecke / Idaho Statesman, AP

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BOISE, Idaho — Family and friends in Idaho are honoring two firefighting pilots who died in a crash.

A memorial service was held in Boise Thursday for 48-year-old Todd Tompkins and 40-year-old Ron Chambless. They died fighting a wildfire June 3 near the Utah-Nevada line when their air tanker hit a mountain just inside Utah.

Tompkins' 10-year-old daughter Paige says she remembers her dad for many things, but also as a great skier. Many from Chambless' family traveled from Texas to be at the service.

The Idaho Statesman reports (http://bit.ly/KZPGnl ) a standing-room crowd of more than 300 packed a Boise building for the service, which was preceded by a procession of fire-fighting vehicles.

U.S. Forest Service and BLM officials expressed regret and presented families with letters of condolence from President Barack Obama.

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