On October 2, 1943 the 10th cavalry regiment of Camp Lockett attacked a 10,000 acre fire in Cleveland National Forest in southern California. Though the inferno was in rough terrain, the 10th was ordered to confront the flames in Hauser Canyon. The Santa Ana winds conflagration claimed 11 lives and injured 77 soldiers of the 10th in one of the most costly wildfires to firemen in US history.

Unknown if Tommie E. was amongst these men. Newspaperarchives only lists the dead, not the injured. The remaining elements of 10th and 28th combined to form the 4th Cavalry Brigade in 1944. They were deactivated March 9, 1944 apparently off the coast of North Africa. Many men from these units were repositioned in Italy as the 92nd Brigade in Italy.

No definitive Thomas "Tommie" E.'s in any of the 10th,4th, or 92nd rosters yet. Difficult to search by computer as when one searches Tommie WW2 it usually references British soldiers, AKA Tommies. This is going to more difficult than originally anticipated but give me a week Chris.

Sources: 'Buffalo Soldiers in California" by Roy Cook, Hauser Canyon Fire Oversight Committee 2004 (why did this take 60 years?)