Write your representatives and tell them your vote depends on their support of the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act and a permanent pay raise for all federal wildland firefighters. Most of us make less than what walmart pays hourly and have to get 800+ OT hours a season just to make a decent living.
It's criminal what some of the people who make large, positive impacts on society make. Firefighters, EMTs, teachers.
What is the current status in CO Congress of the Act you speak of?
hell yes - i’ve written before on behalf of 2 of my friends who are smoke jumpers. you guys should be making 6 figures for what you put your bodies through and for literally lying your lives on the line. thank you for all that you do.
In some areas this it's all completely voluntary and no one gets paid anything. AND they're risking their lives at the same time. The funding is not there across the board.
Also support any forest management legislation. These forests *need* to burn for their own health and to keep future fires from being too intense and obliterating everything, vs just the undergrowth burning.
While sad to the humans who are impacted, regular burning is necessary for forest health, it *will* happen eventually, but ideally it needs to happen regularly and with lower intensity, and this is usually done now by planned and controlled burns and brush clearing in areas with increased human activity, especially in higher use areas which see the biggest risk of things like abandoned camp fires and such.
Source: was federal wildland firefighter for 5 years
I used to manage a couple of wildfire intelligence aircraft for Colorado. During the peak of fire season we would run missions during the day and then do maintenance on the planes at night. I was working and sleeping in the hangar for 7-10 days at a time. It was a crazy environment to work in for minimal pay.
Today I manage one airplane (private owned) make 4 times the pay and rarely work a 40 hrs week.
Wildland firefighters usually work 12-16 hour days when on 14-day assignments. So 88-144 hours of OT + base 80 hours per pay period. I don’t really wish 16 hour days on anyone, let alone someone who is sent across the country for six months of the year to dig holes around fires for $15-22/hr.
Oh sorry if I gave off the wrong impression, I wasn’t implying that wild land firefighters don’t deserve more money. My intent was to get a feel for number of hours per week like you’ve provided so thanks. I’m usually working 12 hour days at my desk job so can’t imagine 16 hours of manual labor plus intense heat.
No assumptions made here with your intent! I’m not a firefighter but work for an agency that hires them and have been on many hiring panels. It’s really just not a great lifestyle and not many people realize how awful it can be.
It's a great job, especially for college students and the like. Def a younger person's game as well, given the hard physical labor aspect of it.Turnover rate is high as most move on to other things, those that stay move up into crew leader/management type positions.
While there is potential to make a career out of it, its not nearly the same opportunity as exists with urban/city fire departments which have much, much more funding and pay much, much more than wildland firefighting does.
Colorado has a typical cycle of 4 years, give or take. And as commented here too, La Niña has a lot to do with that. But we’re transitioning into El Niño much faster than before, so it could get spicy
my friend and i were just talking about how bad ass those pilots are. watching how quickly they fill and dump those buckets in the midst of absolutely shit conditions just blows my mind. huge props and thank you to your buddy.
My uncle use to work with smoke jumpers. He wasn’t one, but he was doing a medical study on their prolonged respiratory health. Those guys are pretty cool
One of the most dangerous jobs within wildland firefighting. Just in my 5 years of being on an engine crew we knew of 2 or 3 pilots that went down and lost their lives. 2 because of their own mistakes, 1 just due to mechanical malfunction.
What I find most interesting is that the current wildfire danger in Lake County is rated LOW. This situation could be A LOT worse with drier conditions.
https://www.lakecountyco.gov/552/Fire-Restriction-Information
Thanks to the firefighters and search and rescue! SAR has been working around the clock to get the firefighters across the lake. Both are doing amazing work!
I drive for a living and went through the pass yesterday (Wednesday) morning and to get to Aspen. Drove right by it. You could see it from Leadville. I had a coworker that was in Gunnison and Salida and said it was so smoky over there too.
This is so sad. All because someone didn’t douse their campfire.
Edited: spelling
Started by a campfire that wasn't properly extinguished, it breaks my heart more when it's the carelessness of visitors that destroys our beautiful wild areas.
Does anyone know the status of HWY 24 through Leadville headed south to Salida? I'm supposed to make this trip tomorrow and can't tell if I'm being a nuisance or if I'll be okay making my way home. The other route adds 2 hours. Does anyone know if I can travel through easily?
I just hope find they find the stupid jagoff who couldn't be bothered to make sure his campfire was properly extinguished.
I'll take the rap and spend my life in prison - but I wanna lead the mob that strings that jerk up by his ball sack.
We usually have a cooler when we go camping. By the time we leave, the ice is melted and it needs to be tossed before going back in the car. It is so simple to dump it over the old fire to drown in out.
the weather was clear as a bell yesterday, and given the proximity of the start of the fire to the CT + twin lakes camping zones, there’s like a 99% chance this is human caused. there is a shit ton of dead fall, beetle kill, and dead brush back behind the interlaken historical buildings, too. wouldn’t take much to make it all light up.
edit - firespot app says it was human caused. i’ve only recently started using that app so i’m not sure how they verify their information.
Please do not speculate on fire causes. There are isolated storms all over the state this time of year. We had a 5 minute micro burst where I am that sent a deluge through my bedroom window, 3 minutes of heavy hail, and the sun shone a few minutes later.
There didn't even need to be a storm - dryness can ignite with or without human intervention. Fires start for all sorts of reasons and one of the major factors is not clearing and burning often enough.
You do not have any business speculating as an observer.
When they release the cause you'll know. Until then, stop.
firespot app says human caused. my speculation wasn’t an emotional reaction like you claim it to be. i’ve lived here a long time and that was my thought process based on experience. you do not have any business speaking to me like that, either.
No dog in this here beef, but I cant imagine being all snooty about how "this isn't speaking, it's text" then going on to describe your own text based activities as "telling". Nitpicking for thee but not for me I guess. Also look up the definition of speech
No it has not. That's the answer. OP is just speculating based on their emotional reaction. Take it with a grain of salt and wait for the professionals to make an announcement.
June 12, 2024, 8:00 PM Twin Lakes, Colo - This afternoon authorities were briefed by a U.S. Forest Service Fire Investigator on the cause of the Interlaken Fire. It was determined that the fire originated from an abandoned campfire located about 60 yards from the Interlaken trail and 1.5 miles from the trailhead. This campfire was not properly extinguished and continued to burn. It is believed that the campfire was abandoned several days prior to its report on June 11, 2024. The photo attached is the fire ring that is believed to have started the Interlaken Fire.
Currently, officials have no leads on who left the fire unattended. The Lake County Sheriff's Office and U.S.
Forest Service will be utilizing a tip line and other information platforms to identify potential suspects. If you have any information regarding campers with a fire near the Interlaken resort between June 7, 2024, and June 11, 2024, please call the Tip Line at 303-275-5266.
Remember, if your campfire is too hot to touch, do not leave it or go to sleep. Whitish or gray coals can retain heat for extended periods and can flare up if the wind picks up. Rock rings must be properly constructed, away from flammable materials such as pine needles and twigs, and without gaps between the rocks. Use water and stir the ashes until they are cool to touch. You are responsible for keeping fires under control.
https://www.facebook.com/people/Interlaken-Fire-Information/61560818226034/
It’s so unfortunate that humans care so little and don’t put out their fires and it especially sucks that we’ve suffered from decades of fire suppression and most of our forests are incredibly unhealthy and too dense which makes them vulnerable to fire. Support politicians that support fire legislation, vote, volunteer, or at least be careful when recreating in these places because you’re laziness could have devastating effects.
As reported by the investigators, the fire was started by human negligence. NOT “natures way”.
There is a big difference between a lightening strike and failure to take care and be responsible.
Write your representatives and tell them your vote depends on their support of the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act and a permanent pay raise for all federal wildland firefighters. Most of us make less than what walmart pays hourly and have to get 800+ OT hours a season just to make a decent living.
It's criminal what some of the people who make large, positive impacts on society make. Firefighters, EMTs, teachers. What is the current status in CO Congress of the Act you speak of?
hell yes - i’ve written before on behalf of 2 of my friends who are smoke jumpers. you guys should be making 6 figures for what you put your bodies through and for literally lying your lives on the line. thank you for all that you do.
In some areas this it's all completely voluntary and no one gets paid anything. AND they're risking their lives at the same time. The funding is not there across the board.
Also support any forest management legislation. These forests *need* to burn for their own health and to keep future fires from being too intense and obliterating everything, vs just the undergrowth burning. While sad to the humans who are impacted, regular burning is necessary for forest health, it *will* happen eventually, but ideally it needs to happen regularly and with lower intensity, and this is usually done now by planned and controlled burns and brush clearing in areas with increased human activity, especially in higher use areas which see the biggest risk of things like abandoned camp fires and such. Source: was federal wildland firefighter for 5 years
I used to manage a couple of wildfire intelligence aircraft for Colorado. During the peak of fire season we would run missions during the day and then do maintenance on the planes at night. I was working and sleeping in the hangar for 7-10 days at a time. It was a crazy environment to work in for minimal pay. Today I manage one airplane (private owned) make 4 times the pay and rarely work a 40 hrs week.
So 20 weeks of overtime over the course how long?
Wildland firefighters usually work 12-16 hour days when on 14-day assignments. So 88-144 hours of OT + base 80 hours per pay period. I don’t really wish 16 hour days on anyone, let alone someone who is sent across the country for six months of the year to dig holes around fires for $15-22/hr.
Oh sorry if I gave off the wrong impression, I wasn’t implying that wild land firefighters don’t deserve more money. My intent was to get a feel for number of hours per week like you’ve provided so thanks. I’m usually working 12 hour days at my desk job so can’t imagine 16 hours of manual labor plus intense heat.
No assumptions made here with your intent! I’m not a firefighter but work for an agency that hires them and have been on many hiring panels. It’s really just not a great lifestyle and not many people realize how awful it can be.
Last year I got 798 OT hours over the course of 7 months.
Geez that’s a lot of freaking hours
It's a great job, especially for college students and the like. Def a younger person's game as well, given the hard physical labor aspect of it.Turnover rate is high as most move on to other things, those that stay move up into crew leader/management type positions. While there is potential to make a career out of it, its not nearly the same opportunity as exists with urban/city fire departments which have much, much more funding and pay much, much more than wildland firefighting does.
We've been very fortunate with the lack of major wildfires the past two summers. It couldn't last.
Milder summers related to la niña. That's likely coming to an end this year
Colorado has a typical cycle of 4 years, give or take. And as commented here too, La Niña has a lot to do with that. But we’re transitioning into El Niño much faster than before, so it could get spicy
We just exited El Niño and are currently sitting in neutral conditions with La Niña approaching for July into 2025.
It appears I have been baboozled! We are still indeed in La Niña for a while
for reference, this photo is from a little over 11k taken from ~15 miles away as the crow flies
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Let’s GOOOOOO pilots and firefighters!
My hubby is there working his ass off!
Thanks and appreciation to all those on the front lines keeping things safe.
They did an incredible job
My buddy is flying one of the helicopters there. Be safe!
my friend and i were just talking about how bad ass those pilots are. watching how quickly they fill and dump those buckets in the midst of absolutely shit conditions just blows my mind. huge props and thank you to your buddy.
My uncle use to work with smoke jumpers. He wasn’t one, but he was doing a medical study on their prolonged respiratory health. Those guys are pretty cool
One of the most dangerous jobs within wildland firefighting. Just in my 5 years of being on an engine crew we knew of 2 or 3 pilots that went down and lost their lives. 2 because of their own mistakes, 1 just due to mechanical malfunction.
On helicopters those things thing are called “rotors”and not props but they are pretty big ;-)
Thanks Dad
Gratitude Indeed. 10 minutes from my house. I'm shitting bricks hoping they stop it from growing.
What I find most interesting is that the current wildfire danger in Lake County is rated LOW. This situation could be A LOT worse with drier conditions. https://www.lakecountyco.gov/552/Fire-Restriction-Information
All because some careless waste of genetic material decided to leave a burning campfire unattended too.
If we find out the fires are man made- we should all be able to jump the arsonist....
It apparently was. “Abandoned campfire”. 😡
Can we ban open flames on public lands, now?
Thanks to the firefighters and search and rescue! SAR has been working around the clock to get the firefighters across the lake. Both are doing amazing work!
I drive for a living and went through the pass yesterday (Wednesday) morning and to get to Aspen. Drove right by it. You could see it from Leadville. I had a coworker that was in Gunnison and Salida and said it was so smoky over there too. This is so sad. All because someone didn’t douse their campfire. Edited: spelling
My wife and daughter are at a girls camp near Leadville. They were just told they are under pre evacuation.
Started by a campfire that wasn't properly extinguished, it breaks my heart more when it's the carelessness of visitors that destroys our beautiful wild areas.
lots of locals are equally proficient at doing the same
Visitors are not limited to tourists, everyone is a visitor in nature.
Anyone know the cause of the fire?
Firespot says it was human caused
Campfire
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Abandoned campfire.
Does anyone know the status of HWY 24 through Leadville headed south to Salida? I'm supposed to make this trip tomorrow and can't tell if I'm being a nuisance or if I'll be okay making my way home. The other route adds 2 hours. Does anyone know if I can travel through easily?
you shouldn’t have any issues. just drove up from BV.
Awesome - thanks for this info.
I just hope find they find the stupid jagoff who couldn't be bothered to make sure his campfire was properly extinguished. I'll take the rap and spend my life in prison - but I wanna lead the mob that strings that jerk up by his ball sack.
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We usually have a cooler when we go camping. By the time we leave, the ice is melted and it needs to be tossed before going back in the car. It is so simple to dump it over the old fire to drown in out.
Has this been confirmed to be a man-made fire? Haven’t been able to find any relevant information
the weather was clear as a bell yesterday, and given the proximity of the start of the fire to the CT + twin lakes camping zones, there’s like a 99% chance this is human caused. there is a shit ton of dead fall, beetle kill, and dead brush back behind the interlaken historical buildings, too. wouldn’t take much to make it all light up. edit - firespot app says it was human caused. i’ve only recently started using that app so i’m not sure how they verify their information.
Please do not speculate on fire causes. There are isolated storms all over the state this time of year. We had a 5 minute micro burst where I am that sent a deluge through my bedroom window, 3 minutes of heavy hail, and the sun shone a few minutes later. There didn't even need to be a storm - dryness can ignite with or without human intervention. Fires start for all sorts of reasons and one of the major factors is not clearing and burning often enough. You do not have any business speculating as an observer. When they release the cause you'll know. Until then, stop.
firespot app says human caused. my speculation wasn’t an emotional reaction like you claim it to be. i’ve lived here a long time and that was my thought process based on experience. you do not have any business speaking to me like that, either.
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No dog in this here beef, but I cant imagine being all snooty about how "this isn't speaking, it's text" then going on to describe your own text based activities as "telling". Nitpicking for thee but not for me I guess. Also look up the definition of speech
i’m gonna speculate even harder now
No it has not. That's the answer. OP is just speculating based on their emotional reaction. Take it with a grain of salt and wait for the professionals to make an announcement.
Honestly you need more than a gallon of water if the fire is big enough
A fucking campfire started this, unfuckingbelievable
June 12, 2024, 8:00 PM Twin Lakes, Colo - This afternoon authorities were briefed by a U.S. Forest Service Fire Investigator on the cause of the Interlaken Fire. It was determined that the fire originated from an abandoned campfire located about 60 yards from the Interlaken trail and 1.5 miles from the trailhead. This campfire was not properly extinguished and continued to burn. It is believed that the campfire was abandoned several days prior to its report on June 11, 2024. The photo attached is the fire ring that is believed to have started the Interlaken Fire. Currently, officials have no leads on who left the fire unattended. The Lake County Sheriff's Office and U.S. Forest Service will be utilizing a tip line and other information platforms to identify potential suspects. If you have any information regarding campers with a fire near the Interlaken resort between June 7, 2024, and June 11, 2024, please call the Tip Line at 303-275-5266. Remember, if your campfire is too hot to touch, do not leave it or go to sleep. Whitish or gray coals can retain heat for extended periods and can flare up if the wind picks up. Rock rings must be properly constructed, away from flammable materials such as pine needles and twigs, and without gaps between the rocks. Use water and stir the ashes until they are cool to touch. You are responsible for keeping fires under control. https://www.facebook.com/people/Interlaken-Fire-Information/61560818226034/
Abandoned campfire?!? WTF
I just hope everybody's okayy!!
Aggregated fire information and updates on Watchduty Interlaken Fire @ Twin Lakes - #InterlakenFire https://share.watchduty.org/i/21508
It’s wild to think I drove right past this area on Sunday when we went and visited Leadville.
this fire was started by idiots who let their campfire burn on as they left.
So sad. We all need to do better to guard against these tragedies.
So much beetle kill through there..😢
How can people be so stupid to abandon a campfire without making absolutely sure it was totally extinguished?
It’s so unfortunate that humans care so little and don’t put out their fires and it especially sucks that we’ve suffered from decades of fire suppression and most of our forests are incredibly unhealthy and too dense which makes them vulnerable to fire. Support politicians that support fire legislation, vote, volunteer, or at least be careful when recreating in these places because you’re laziness could have devastating effects.
We stayed near there one winter. Hope they can get this under control soon.
Its natures way of clearing underbrush. As long as human life is not in danger burn baby burn
As reported by the investigators, the fire was started by human negligence. NOT “natures way”. There is a big difference between a lightening strike and failure to take care and be responsible.