Oregon flags will fly at half-staff Saturday, Oct. 17, to honor David Taylor. The 38-year-old federal wildlife officer from Scio died while helping residents evacuate a wildfire in Oklahoma.
Gov. Tina Kotek ordered the observance at all Oregon public institutions from sunrise to sunset, timed to coincide with Taylor's memorial service in Salem, according to a statement from the governor's office.
Taylor, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officer stationed at Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, died Aug. 29 during the Railroad South Fire near Indiahoma, Oklahoma. He had been working with local emergency crews going door to door to help people evacuate when dispatch lost contact with him, according to KPTV, which first reported the death. Officials later said evidence found at a building where Taylor had been helping a resident escape indicated he died during the effort.
The fire burned 515 acres. The human-caused blaze on private land in Comanche County has since been brought to full containment.
Taylor grew up in Linn County and graduated from Scio High School in 2006. He volunteered as a firefighter with the Scio Rural Fire Protection District before entering federal service. He served on active duty in the U.S. Navy and continued in the Navy Reserve, where he held the rank of Senior Chief Petty Officer. According to officials, his military career spanned 20 years and included four deployments to Djibouti and one to Iraq.
Before joining the Wichita Mountains refuge, Taylor worked at Rio Mora National Wildlife Refuge and Las Vegas National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico. He held a bachelor's degree in criminal administrative justice from the University of Phoenix.
"When people were in danger, David was there helping them get to safety," U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Brian Nesvik said in an August statement.
Kotek called Taylor's record "a storied record of service and courage" and extended condolences on behalf of all Oregonians.
The memorial service takes place in Salem. The governor's office has not released a specific time or location. Flags fly at half-staff sunrise to sunset Saturday at all Oregon public institutions.
