[PPRAANet] Waldo Canyon Fire viewpoint from a Firefighter

[Stephen Leander]

If you decide to stay during a mandatory evacuation, you're putting your
life in severe jeopardy and endangering the firefighters on the ground.  19
Hotshots lost their life this week - and these are EXPERTS.  What happened
in Mountain Shadows was a perfect storm of weather and fuels, just like what
happened in Black Forest a few weeks ago - it takes time to get resources in
place and you can only defend structures IF the conditions permit it.

I am a Wildland Firefighter, I was finishing up a 2 week deployment at High
Park when Waldo Canyon broke out. I was the driver/engineer on Manitou's
tactical tender, I came home to an evacuated town and my own house
evacuated. I have done structure triage and protection on many fires, most
recently on the Black Forest fire.  If you want to save your house, do the
work BEFORE the fire, not during.  Get a Firewise assessment and mitigate.
Get Barricade Gel and prep your house and deck.  Be SMART.

Preservation of life, Incident stabilization, and Preservation of property
are the priorities. If you stay you will potentially divert resources to try
to keep you from getting killed - and probably burning up other houses in
the process (I wonder what your neighbors will think of you then?).  If it's
determined that it's too dangerous we will NOT kill firefighters to try to
save a resident who makes a BAD decision to stay. That's the truth - 1 death
is better than 3 to 5.  If you think it's wise to risk your life, risk
others' lives, and divert resources for a house that can be replaced, then
you're an idiot.  I don't know what else to say - people that stay
complicate the firefighting efforts and can easily wind up dead.  If you
house is so important to you then make it survivable without intervention.

Look at it this way, if crazed armed robber puts a gun to your head and
demands your money, are you going to resist over the money in your wallet?
Maybe not the best example, I can see fighting back because you feel your
life is in imminent danger, but if your motivation to resist is to save the
$38 in your wallet then your choice is stupid - it just is.  Fire doesn't
care either way.

Steve
KV6O