[PPRAANet] Waldo Canyon Fire info

[W0MU Mike Fatchett]

On 7/1/2013 4:34 PM, Mick Sparling wrote:
> After the evacuation, the resources left, leaving the homes undefended 
> (no people in them)!  See the problem???
>
Comments like this are very offensive and I do not fight fire in 
Colorado Springs or Colorado.  Colorado does not have enough resources 
to set a fire engine up at each and every home that might be affected.

I was watching the live streams from Montana and could see many 
structure protection units in the middle of the fire saving houses. 
Prior to the Fire Storm I am sure that there were strike teams and 
structure protection teams paroling the those areas.

What happened with the Waldo Canyon fire was that the smoke column 
collapsed on itself and that was compounded with a large thunderstorm.  
The collapse of the column caused the fire to quickly burn in nearly 
every direction at once.  There is no way to predict or plan for these 
types of events.  Units that were in front of the fire lines now found 
themselves behind the flame front almost instantly.

The majority of resources are fighting fire, not waiting for fire to 
burn down to them sitting in driveways playing cards.  Those crews are 
working their butts off trying to save homes and real estate.