Wildfire
Fire Danger
See the fire danger for the following counties: Routt, Jackson, Grand, Moffat and Rio Blanco in northwest Colorado. Routt County is FDRA Two and conditions are updated on a daily basis.
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Tailgate Talk Shares Planned Fairview Mitigation Focus
Thursday, September 7 @ 6pm | Blackmer Trailhead
Wildfire mitigation and fuel reduction has been at the forefront of recent efforts for many agencies and these vital initiatives continue with planned mitigation work near the Fairview neighborhood later this September.
The chief will host a causal chat with residents on Thursday, September 7, at 6pm, that will outline upcoming mitigation efforts on city property adjacent to Fairview. The session will take place at the Blackmer Trailhead at 6pm around the Wildland Fire Brush Truck. Josh Hankes with the Routt County Wildland Mitigation Council and Carolina Manriquez, a forester with the Colorado Forest Service, are anticipated to join the meeting with the chief.
Currently, SSFR plans to have a contractor come in to reduce fuels and increase defensive corridors in an approximately 8.5-acre area of city owned land that lies south of Fairview, north of Gasline Trail and in between Blackmer and Molly’s Trails. The work is anticipated to take approximately two to five days to complete.
SSFR Conducts Emerald Mountain Fire Mitigation Project
SSFR is underway implementing a four-year effort to mitigate critical infrastructure and improve wildland fire prevention on Emerald Mountain starting this summer.
“As we’ve seen over the years — recent years, anyway — wildfires are increasingly unpredictable,” said Chief Chuck Cerasoli in an interview. “The biggest concern, and what we saw over in Grand Lake and in other areas, is a fast-moving wildfire that creates these ember storms. They can really land anywhere.”
With grant funding provided by Colorado State Forest Service, chipping equipment has been secured by SSFR to help with fuels reduction throughout the Steamboat Springs Area Fire District.
The two-person wildland fire crew has hit the ground running and is currently working on Blackmer Road. Timber and brush are being cleared approximately 25 feet from the center of the road and large pieces are being bundled in piles for burning, and chipping/removal later.
Over the summer, the local SSFR team will be working their way down the popular trail road as well as on Prayer Flag Rd and Lane of Pain to reduce fuels, creating valuable zones to slow or stop a wildfire. In addition, mitigation efforts using a variety of methods in adjacent neighborhoods, like Fairview and Brooklyn, will be the focus of the reduction program.
A Type-3 Wildland Urban Interface Fire Engine, chipper box truck, and chipper have been added to the department’s arsenal of wildland fire equipment. SSFR seasonal wildland firefighters conduct home assessments, implement mitigation efforts, educate the public and respond/deploy to wildfires.
Team Rubicon
The Routt County Wildfire Mitigation Council secured Team Rubicon to join in the effort this summer. Thirty to forty members of this veteran led humanitarian organization were split into two teams for work around the Communications Towers at the summit and conducting residential assessments on properties that border city land.
“After a few discussions between Team Rubicon and local agencies, it was decided that support for the Emerald Mountain project would have a lasting impact and would be a great way to kick off the long-term project,” said Wildfire Mitigation Council executive director Josh Hankes. Learn more at Routt Wildfire Team Rubicon.