Tuesday afternoon Cresson Volunteer Fire Chief Ron Becker said Diana Jones was the firefighter who died in California while battling the wildfire.
Jones was an EMT and firefighter in Cresson for the last five years.
"She loved helping other people and she didn't do it for pats on the back, she just did it because she thought that was the thing to do. I'm going to miss her, we're going to miss her badly," Becker said.
He said every year Jones and her adult son, who is a captain with the Cresson Volunteer Fire Department, would head West as contractors during the fire season and help battle wildfires.
"They would head out and this is the way that they make a living , but also get some time up there, and they would head out and do this type of work," Becker said.
The chief said he doesn't know all the circumstances leading up to Jones' death, but received a phone call from Jones' daughter-in-law Monday night about the firefighter's passing.
"Numbness is the only word I know how to use, you just don't anticipate something like this," Becker expressed.
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According to the U.S. Forest Service, a firefighter and another were injured while battening the flames in Medocino National Forest, which is north of San Francisco.
Becker said Jones will be remembered for her kind heart. He said she comes from a line of public servants. Becker said her other son is in law enforcement.
