Wildland Fire Safety
Current Fire restrictions and Fire Danger information for Lake County:
Currently Lake County is listed as MODERATE in the fire danger category. At this time there are no fire bans in place. However, campfires are limited to 3 feet in diameter with a fire ring built around the fire. We encourage everyone to be cautious in the woods these next few weeks with their campfires because our forests are still extremely dry from recent droughts. Burn permits are available from Leadville Lake County Fire Rescue at 816 Harrison Ave., Leadville, CO 80461, 719-486-2990.
Wild Fires are a common occurrence in Lake county during the summer. The combination of little precipitation, a lot of dry lightning, and unattended campfires lead to wildfires in our area.
Wildfires, or Wildland fires, can be very destructive to residential areas that are not properly protected against them. There are many things a homeowner in the Wildland-urban interface can do to protect their home:
A "defensible space", or safety zone must be created around a home; an area 30 feet around a structure without continuous trees or brush should be made
keep canopy of trees in safety zone at least 12 feet apart
brush cover should be 10 feet apart in the safety zone
dispose of all slash piles by scattering the limbs in the woods, chipping the wood, or burning slash when snow cover is sufficient
plant a "green belt" of grass or flowers around the house, or use rocks as a firebreak
avoid using woodchips next to house for landscaping
keep grass less than 2 inches tall
water grass or yard during extreme fire danger
keep tree limbs 10 feet from the house
stack firewood uphill and 15 feet from the house
thin trees within 100 feet of house so the crowns (canopy) do not touch
make sure roads to home are not obstructed so fire apparatus can get to the house
Wildfires can spread very quickly uphill and in windy conditions. However, if the above practices are followed, the chances of losing a home or other structure to a wildfire are greatly reduced.
Once the snow covers the ground, the wildfire season is usually over. Stay tuned to our website for more information on wildfires as Spring draws closer.
Source: Colorado State Forest Service
For more information regarding Wildland Safety Contact:
Shawn Flora at (719) 486-2990 or sflora@leadvillefire.org sflora@leadvillefire.org
For more information on the current fire danger status and/or fire restrictions please go to the forest service web site at: www.fs.fed.us
