KAMIAH, Idaho (Gray News) – A U.S. Forest Service firefighter remains hospitalized with a traumatic brain injury after being struck by a falling tree while fighting a wildfire, his family said.

According to officials, Justin “Riley” Shaw, the 26-year-old deputy foreman of the Salmon River Ranger District, and other U.S. Forest Service firefighters responded to the scene around 9 p.m. Saturday to begin battling the Coffee Can Saddle Fire in Idaho’s Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest.

Shortly after arriving, Shaw was struck by a falling tree, according to Jim Wimer, the national forest’s fire information specialist.

“Almost as soon as they showed up, it happened,” Wimer told The Lewiston Tribune. “It wasn’t a tree that was being worked on. It was one of the silent trees.”

Officials said Shaw was flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, Washington.

Family members called the incident “life-changing” on a GoFundMe page set up to help with costs, saying the 26-year-old suffered a traumatic brain injury and will remain in intensive care “for the foreseeable future.”

“Justin ‘Riley’ has a long recovery period. We thank everyone for their prayers for a continued recovery,” Shaw’s mother, Dawn Shaw, told The Spokesman-Review.

The Coffee Can Saddle Fire was brought under control by firefighters after burning about a quarter-acre of land, the Tribune reported.

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