A 500-pound bronze statue of a wildland firefighter arrived Thursday at the Montana State Firefighters Memorial in Laurel, installed just ahead of the annual ceremony this Saturday honoring firefighters who have died in the line of duty.

The ceremony is held each year on the second Saturday in June and draws firefighters, families, and officials from across the state. This year's event will include the addition of at least one new name to the memorial — a firefighter who died in the line of duty since the last ceremony.

The wildland firefighter statue reflects the reality of Montana's fire seasons, which have grown longer and more destructive in recent decades. Wildland firefighting deaths account for a significant share of the names already on the memorial.

For Montanans who have lost someone to a fire call — or who know a firefighter working the state's forests and rangeland — the Laurel memorial is a place of particular weight. Saturday's ceremony is open to the public.