The State - News from Aug. 15, 1988

U.S. Forest Service investigators retrieved the engines and propellers from an airplane that crashed while battling a wildfire in the Sequoia National Forest, to determine their condition at the time the plane went down, officials said. While the cause of Friday’s crash remained unknown, chief investigator Roy Keck said the twin-engine Beechcraft “impacted the ground in a near vertical, nose-down position.” The crash killed pilot Charles Watkins, 53, of Rialto, a 15-year veteran of the Forest Service. The blaze, in a canyon about 50 miles northeast of Bakersfield, was contained over the weekend. It was started by a careless smoker, fire officials said. A suspect, Chris Goebel, 33, Bodfish, Calif., was in custody.