Blog
Saturday, March 31, 2012
First Fire
The first major wildfire of
the season is lapping at the western fringes of metropolitan Denver. Six
hundred firefighters along with several airplanes, hundreds of trucks and more
equipment than can be imagined began to attack the fire today during what has
been promised to be a relatively windless day. There have been at least two
deaths and one missing woman. If it sounds like a war then you would be right.
As I understand the firefighting priorities, they first work to save lives of
people and animals, then comes property and finally, when those things have
been accomplished, the firefighters actually turn their attention to fighting
the fire.
This fire started as a
controlled burn, a risky maneuver at best in a somewhat populated area but
often necessary to limit future fires and for the overall health of the forest.
It seems to me that there must be a better way.
I watched a fire last year
in the high reaches of the southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains southwest of
Westcliffe. No one was fighting this fire. Firefighters must have been held
back because of the unpopulated area the fire was in. I think about these things and what we need to do to prevent
these massive efforts and the extreme risk to residents and firefighters.
posted by Custom Blogs @ 5:28 PM
