Althouse: "Monster wildfire rages in Colorado..."

June 27, 2012

"Monster wildfire rages in Colorado..."

Story... photos... video....

16 comments:

Jason said...: Not to get all Crack on this blog, but I think this is a good time to plug my article, Wildfire Home Defense Checklist... a must-read for anyone who lives or owns property in a high-risk area.

http://www.realestate.com/advice/wildfire-home-defense-checklist

Certainly praying for all those affected by this fire.; 6/27/12, 9:41 AM
edutcher said...: They've been having similar problems in NM.

Must be a very dry year on the High Plains.; 6/27/12, 9:45 AM
dmoelling said...: Look at the houses in the photos and how many trees are around them. I pulled this quote from the Minnesota DNR webpage on how to Wildfire proof your home.

"A conifer crown fire in this zone (within 30 ft of house) can be a death sentence for your home"

Pretty houses in steep, hard to access terrain with plenty of fuel nearby. Doesn't anybody learn?; 6/27/12, 9:45 AM
Wince said...: "Monster Wildfire" made me think of Quatermass and the Pit (US title: Five Million Years to Earth).; 6/27/12, 9:50 AM
exhelodrvr1 said...: Dry years, too many trees, plus a lot of pine beetle-killed trees just waiting to burn.; 6/27/12, 9:58 AM
Tibore said...: Lightning caused one of the local fires, I'm still not positive what caused one of the others. But in aggregate, they're turning out to be a damn huge wildfire.

Scary. Hope all the residents are getting to safety.; 6/27/12, 10:23 AM
Hagar said...: The New Mexico are less convenient to access from a major airport.; 6/27/12, 10:26 AM
Sal said...: Say, didn't someone say something about not wanting to pay for any more firefighters a week ago?; 6/27/12, 10:58 AM
Scott said...: Monsters are combustible, huh. I thought it was just vampires in the sun.; 6/27/12, 11:27 AM
Larry J said...: Yeah, the fire(s) here in Colorado Springs are bad. Yesterday was a very bad day. When you factor in an abnormally dry winter and spring, throw in a heat wave (yesterday was the hottest day ever recorded here), humidity less than 10% and strong winds (gusts peaked at 60 MPH), you're going to have a hard time putting out a wildfire. Reports this morning indicate over 100 homes and building have burned. This is a long way from over.

As to the remark about not wanting to hire more firefighters, that's a strawman. Obama wants to prop up government payrolls and mention "teachers, cops and firefighters" as if they're the only types of people government hires. He conviently overlooks the countless bureaucrats and managers in positions like Third Deputy Assistant Undersecretary for Diversity and Sustainment. This is the "Washington Monument" strategy for punishing the public for not giving you all of the tax money you want.; 6/27/12, 11:31 AM
wyo sis said...: My son and son-in-law are wildland firefighters. They say this is going to happen more and more because of Sierra club types and years of political interference in forest management. When the undergrowth and mature trees are not allowed to be cleared away this is the result.

You can thank enviros and progressives for this. It's so revealing when libs cause a problem then use that problem to prop up their agenda.; 6/27/12, 1:10 PM
Blue@9 said...: It's been killing me the last day or so. Colo Spgs is my hometown; Facebook is just one huge album of fire and evac photos from friends. It's just so damn sad to see that beautiful area burn down. Waldo Canyon, Flying W Ranch, just ashes.; 6/27/12, 2:10 PM
K in Colorado said...: My son is a cadet in the Civil Air Patrol, and was not quite halfway into his week long Encampment at the Air Force Academy. Last night the CAP cadets were all evacuated to Peterson AFB in southeast Colorado Springs. I had to drive down from Denver this morning to get him. After watching the Denver news showing the fire storm coming down the mountain side and the homes going up in flame, it was still jarring to see the fire in person. The smoke was terrible, and you could see the fires burning on the lower slopes of the foot hills and in some of the subdivisions. As of the last report, 10 acres on the Academy grounds had burned. Pre-evacuations have been called for areas of Monument to the north of the Academy.; 6/27/12, 4:09 PM
Larry J said...: Obama has announced that he's coming here on Friday. I really wish he wouldn't (and not just because I don't like him). His visit will divert resources away from the fire. Our cops are very busy right now helping people evacuate, managing traffic flow and trying to maintain security in the evacuated areas. I honest see no practical (as opposed to political) reason for Obama to come at this time. I'd say the same thing if it was anyone else.; 6/27/12, 5:18 PM
dhagood said...: Say, didn't someone say something about not wanting to pay for any more firefighters a week ago?

no, somebody said something about the fleet of slurry tankers that had their contract cancelled in 2011. sure could use those tankers in colorado right now.; 6/27/12, 7:24 PM
Anthony said...: It happened during baseball season, so the (San Francisco) Chronicle may not have covered it.; 6/28/12, 12:38 AM