State Park Peace Officer

Department of Parks and Recreation

11/9/2018

Special Act Award (Gold)

On the morning of November 9, 2018, State Park Peace Officers Christopher Beehner and Zackery Chambers were called in to respond to the Camp Fire in Butte County. Within minutes of responding, Officer Chambers was partnered with a U.S. Forest Service officer and helped stop northbound traffic on Pentz Road. The sky was black and the roadway was lit by flames and his headlights. On Pearson Road, Officer Chambers encountered more flames, downed lines and trees. He was quickly surrounded by fire and embers blew into his vehicle. As a firefighter was leaving the area, he told Officer Chambers, "you're not going to make it, and, if we don't leave, we are going to die." However, Officer Chambers continued to help evacuate homes off of DeMille Road with the fire again surrounding him. He helped evacuate an elderly couple and their pets from the front of their residence while the back of their home was already on fire. As they were leaving, there were flames on both sides of the road and they had to drive through the flames, hoping the vehicle did not catch on fire. The whole time Officer Chambers was working, he worried about his wife. He had told her she would be safe going to work in Paradise, but he never imagined the fire would move so quickly. With the phones down, he was unable to find out if his wife was safe until hours later. Thankfully, she was able to safely make it out of Paradise. Officer Chambers was then assigned to evacuate Yankee Hill. At the time, he believed the fire was going in the opposite direction. However, soon after the area was evacuated, it was on fire. Meanwhile, Officer Beehner helped evacuate homes in Paradise and Concow while the fire raged. Officers Beehner and Chambers next went to help evacuate Magalia. They met a group of Butte County Sheriff deputies in Magalia doing evacuations, but shortly after their arrival, the fire threatened to cut off all the routes out of Magalia. All of the deputies evacuated the area but Officers Beehner and Chambers stayed in Magalia to evacuate as many people as they could, in spite of the risk of being trapped by the fire. With no regard for his own safety, Officer Chambers went above and beyond the call of duty. The State of California takes great pride in presenting the Gold Medal of Valor to California Department of Parks and Recreation State Park Peace Officer Zackery Chambers.