High Winds Mean High Fire Danger In Colorado Springs

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — The Colorado Springs Fire Department says it is critical for residents of Colorado Springs to know if they live in the Wild Land Urban Interface, and the fire dangers there. It’s different parts of town that have a higher risk of fire because of their proximity
to certain types of vegetation. You can check out the map to see where you lie.

Monday, 5/6/24 we saw a fire started on the southwest side of Colorado Springs- that was in fact inside the Wild Land Urban Interface. The fire department says the fire was caused by a downed power line due to the high winds. Steve Oswald, the Battalion Chief at CSFD says down power lines come with a lot of danger, including fires… “some of the dangers you need to be aware of besides just the wind, is it’s taking out a lot of power, we still have a lot of poles that are in precarious spots that could still break in the wind… You need to be aware of any above-ground power lines”

Earlier this spring, Governor Jared Polis and the state forest service announced 31 wildfire mitigation grants across the state. The grants assist communities and groups in reducing wildfire risk in their areas. Almost all of Colorado is under some type of threat, including El Paso County. The worst is to the west, and up into Teller County, which is almost completely high-intensity.

Oswald tells me the temperatures is also a factor to fire danger “As we move into the summertime, as we have been growing more and more fuels, grasses are starting to grow, anytime we get into wind events like this and we get arcing or sparking, you need to be careful with fire starting because of those events”

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