When the weather and snow conditions are favorable, the BMFPD Mitigation Crew jumps on the opportunity to remove excess vegetation from the district’s hillsides, in the form of pile burning operations. We had such an opportunity with the heavy snowfall Mid-March with the accumulation of two to three feet of snowfall. Our firefighters took this opportunity to ignite the piles successfully and monitor them throughout the day, returning for several days thereafter to check on the piles for any heat and confirmation that they were fully extinguished.
Visiting a Local Preschool
Boulder Mountain Fire Mitigation Crew visited early this Summer with KinderCare Learning Centers in Boulder. We were able to speak with them on Fire Safety, the role of a firefighter, and show them our apparatus and how it is used in emergency dispatch calls. We enjoyed both their questions, their enthusiasm and especially the costumes of what may be a future firefighter in a few years.
Talking Live on Community Radio about Wildfire Risks and Preparedness
BMFPD’s Wildland Division Chief, Mike Palamara, was asked to join with other Boulder County Wildfire Specialists, for a live broadcast on KGNU radio. Calls were taken from the community to answer questions about preparedness in the urban interface communities. Click below for a listen to the taped broadcast.
BMFPD Wildfire Crew assists with Wildfires
Boulder Mountain Fire’s Wildfire Crew had a busy dispatch season. The season started off early for us as we had our Type 6 Engine dispatched to the Calf Canyon Fire outside of Taos, New Mexico in May. From there the crew and engine served several dispatch rolls in Southern California near the Bakersfield area. In total, we ended up with seven dispatch rolls and ended up with a wealth of knowledge and experiences from the season. The wildfire crew also went out with Boulder County’s Type 2 Initial Attack hand crew, Shadow Canyon, for several rolls across the Western United States. Overall, it was a successful season of assisting with fire suppression and staying safe while doing the job at hand.
Kicking off the Season with a Prescribed Burn
Boulder Mountain Wildfire Crew and Members of the Volunteer Core were called upon by the City of Boulder on a prescribed burn in the Teller Lake area of Boulder, CO. The project was to burn materials around the lake which would increase water flow from the lake into some watershed areas. BMF worked alongside a half dozen local agencies toward this cause. It was good to continue to build relationships with other departments, to see some new faces on crews and connect with familiar faces. In addition, our seasonal wildland firefighters started their season with BMF this week, and found this prescribed burn a good way to deepen their knowledge and fire experience and be better prepared for the looming wildfire season ahead.
Welcoming the new seasonal wildland firefighters
The Mitigation Team, also known as the ERT (Emergency Response Team) has been working diligently behind the scenes to select their new hires for the 2021 Season. We will be welcoming the new hires that will be coming from all corners of the country to Boulder Mountain Fire Protection District. These new employees will have a variety of backgrounds but all share a common love of the outdoors and wildland firefighting. Each of them carries certifications and qualifications that make them well trained for the role for which they will fill with BMFPD. Some of the new hires have chainsaw certifications, many have EMT and medical certifications, and all of them are wildland firefighter certified. Please join us in welcoming them into our district, where they will be joining our returning seasonal wildland firefighters for the 2021 season on April 12.
Colorado Wildfires Set New Historical Records
The Year of 2020 has had its share of challenges. As our nation battled the COVID-19 virus, Boulder Mountain Fire Protection District’s wildland firefighters also had their hands full of challenges with some of the largest forest fires in Colorado’s history. The crew and engines were deployed throughout the state with the exceptionally dry Summer and Fall conditions. The firefighters dispatched on 13 fires this season for rolls up to 14 consecutive workdays each, often working 16 hours shifts each day. Due to the vast number of fires burning concurrently in the state, the firefighters put in shifts beyond that length at the Cameron Peak Fire with shifts working an 32 hour shift followed by an 24 hour shift with containment efforts. Our engines were out at some of the largest fires in the state, including the Pine Gulch Fire, the Cameron Peak Fire and the East Troublesome Fire. In addition, BMFPD had engine and crew out helping neighboring western states with fires in Northern California in the early season. Many homeowners in our district are also well aware of the threat faced in October of this year as our firefighters and department battled fires in Boulder County with the Lefthand Fire, west of our district and the Calwood Fire, north of our district. BMFPD had crew helping with evacuation within a portion of our district, structure prep for homes within the district and 24/7 Surveilance from key lookout spots for any advancement of the two Boulder County fires threatening our district. The snow in late October was a welcome sight although the district needs to remain vigilant as the dry conditions remain leaving continued risk for wildfire. Fingers crossed, we will have ample snowfall this winter.
Assisting our local schools
Boulder Mountain Fire Protection District’s Mitigation crew was able to answer a unique call to action. Shining Mountain Waldorf School, located in Boulder, Colorado contacted BMFPD late summer with their request for assistance. As the school prepared to reopen their facility for children, they wanted to enhance their outdoor classroom. Being that BMFPD recently completed a fire break in the area, we were able to provide ponderosa pine tree stumps as repurposed fixtures for their education sessions.
Community Outreach to our youth
Boulder Mountain Fire Protection District’s Mike Palamara and Mitch Lamboeuf were invited to talk on behalf of our department to the Lincoln Hill’s youth community. This is the second year we have been asked to be involved in this program, which provides exposure to mountain environments to youth groups. Both Mike and Mitch were able to elaborate on the roles wildland firefighters, as well of many of the vast support roles such as finance, logistics, air resource and others that are needed in the wildland firefighting field. Many of the young adults in this group were high school juniors and seniors who are embarking on a future career decisions and we were excited to share our enthusiasm for the wildland fire career field.
Supporting our neighbors
Boulder Mountain Fire District’s Engine and Wildland Firefighters received a fire dispatch on October 16, requesting assistance with the Decker Fire in the Sangre de Cristo Wilderness. Located 2 miles south of Salida, the Decker Fire appears to be a lightning caused wildfire which started on September 8. Boulder Mountain Fire Protection District was called in to assist our southern neighbors as the incident report predicts further fire spread primarily driven by wind as a weather front approaches. The fire has burned 8570 acres at present and is 30% contained.
