The Smelter Fire is burning in close proximity to residences in NW Amarillo. The fire is burring along NW 15th and Smelter Rd. The fire is currently not a threat to local residences and no evacuation has been ordered. Please drive with caution near the areas of NW 15th and Smelter RD. Smoke from wildfires can cause visibility issues while driving through active areas. Be aware that local traffic may be slowed in some areas that are being affected by smoke and wildfire suppression activities. 

Nicole01132021 announcement

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The fire has been mapped at 814 acres. Containment of the fire is now at 98 percent. Crews will continue to improve lines and work on priority areas holding heat near FM 1033. The incident commander reports no concerns with regards to control efforts and estimated control of the fire will be end of this operational period. All roads have been opened and there are no concerns for public safety. 

The Left Field Fire started along FM 1033 NE of Childress and has crossed FM 268. Please be cautious while travelling through this area as suppression and fire control efforts may impact traffic on these routes. Expect delays and potential closures and drive to local road conditions.  

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (Dec. 17, 2020) – In the aftermath of five wildfires, multiple teams of natural resource specialists have completed their initial assessments of burned areas on the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests. Cameron Peak, Williams Fork, East Troublesome, Cal-Wood and Lefthand fires collectively burned more than 323,000 acres of National Forest lands in 2020.

These rapid assessments, part of the “Burned Area Emergency Response” or BAER program, represent a small part of the greater, collaborative, post-wildfire recovery efforts currently underway with a coalition of local, state and federal agencies, scientists and natural resource managers. BAER is an initial step that focuses solely on National Forest lands and values at risk in the immediate aftermath.

“There’s a great deal of interest in the BAER effort initially because it’s our first real look at what took place out there during the fire,” said Forest Supervisor Monte Williams. “But, BAER is only one piece of the puzzle. Now that we have that piece in place, we’re focused on working closely with our partners to support the priorities we collectively identify, from protecting water resources and securing infrastructure to rehabilitating and rebuilding our recreation areas.”

BAER funding is limited in its scope. For instance, it doesn’t pay to rebuild burned outhouses in campgrounds; but it does provide funding to temporarily cap burned pit toilets for public safety reasons.

Extensive research since the Hayman and High Park fires has provided land managers with a deeper understanding of what immediate post-fire treatments are most effective at reducing post-wildfire impacts to watersheds. For example, pulling undersized culverts and digging water bars on trails has been found to be more effective at reducing sedimentation, runoff and flooding than scattering mulch, seed and haybales across the landscape. While these have been popular post-fire treatments in the past, they have been found to have limited benefit. These treatments risk introducing noxious weeds to the environment and add to the debris washing into streams.

“We have to consider where we get the most bang for the buck,” Williams said. “In the longer term, my hope is that these collaborative groups will work together beyond post-fire recovery to help prepare our landscapes to be more resilient to future wildfires.”

One of the most valuable tools BAER assessments produce is soil burn severity maps, which cover entire fire perimeters and serve as a cross-jurisdictional reference tool. These maps will provide valuable data as recovery teams model potential affects and make decisions about where to focus efforts and funding.

Given these fires’ extended duration into the late season, team’s assessment efforts were hampered by snow and hazardous conditions. As a result, teams will need to return to certain areas in the spring for further assessment. In addition, hundreds of miles of roads and trails across both the Cameron Peak and East Troublesome fires remain to be surveyed and stabilized.

Executive summaries of the BAER findings, along with the soil burn severity maps and some example photos of the burned areas are now available for the public. See below for links. 

 See below for a summary report of the Cal-Wood BAER assessments. 

The CalWood Fire started on Oct. 17 and Lefthand Fire started on Oct.18, 2020. Lefthand was contained at 460 acres and Calwood at 10,106 acres.  A Burned Area Emergency Response Team (BAER) was established for the CalWood Fire by the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National Grassland to conduct a burned area assessment.  A full BAER assessment was not conducted on the Lefthand Fire because it’s small size normally doesn’t meet the criteria.  However due to its proximity to the CalWood fire soil burn severity maps were created for both fires.

BAER surveys are rapid assessments that evaluate the burned area to identify watersheds having increased potential for post-fire flooding, erosion, debris flows and rockslides. Since the BAER survey is a rapid assessment to assist land managers to prepare the burned area for future rain events, the team initially focused on potential emergency impacts to life and safety on National Forest System lands.

BAER teams consist of scientists and specialists, including hydrologists, soil scientists, engineers, botanists, biologists, archeologists and more. These teams collect data during their burned area surveys and present their findings and recommended emergency stabilization treatments or actions in a BAER assessment report.

BAER teams utilize satellite imagery which is then field validated and adjusted where needed by soil specialists to produce a map that shows the levels of soil burn severity on the watersheds. Changes in soil properties are the primary cause of increased post-fire erosion, flooding and debris flow potential. This is the first step in assessing potential watershed impacts from the wildfire to any National Forest values that may be at risk from potential increased flooding, sedimentation, debris flows and rockslides. BAER emergency response efforts are focused on the protection of human life, safety and property on the National Forest, as well as critical cultural and natural resources such as the water quality of streams on National Forest System lands.

BAER reports are shared with interagency cooperators who work to identify and prepare for potential post-fire flooding and debris flow impacts. The Forest Service completed their soil burn severity mapping for both fires in mid-November and will release their Burned Area Emergency Response report later this month.  This is just one step of recovery.

The Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests has been working as part of an interagency group led by Boulder County that includes to develop a plan on long-term recovery efforts and address the needs collectively across jurisdictions.  Partners include Boulder County Parks & Open Space, Boulder County Office of Emergency Management, National Weather Service, City of Longmont, Natural Resource Conservation Service, United States Geological Survey, Watershed Science and Design, Cal-Wood Education Center, St. Vrain and Lefthand Water Conservancy District, Longmont and Boulder Valley Conservation Districts, Colorado State Forest Service, Colorado Forest Restoration Institute, Colorado State University.

As more information becomes available it will be posted here.

 BOND FIRE COMMUNITY MEETING WHEN: 3:00 p.m., Sunday, December 6, 2020
WHERE: Hangar 244Orange County Great Park8000 Great Park Blvd.Irvine, CA 92618
Parking available in Lot 2 or Lot 3
WHAT: Fire officials will provide an update on the current status of the Bond Fire and will be available to answer questions following the meeting.
Technology permitting, the meeting will be livestreamed via the OCFA Facebook page @OrangeCountyFire.

Media Information Line: 714-504-2631 

 BOND FIRE COMMUNITY MEETING
WHEN: 3:00 p.m., Saturday, December 5, 2020
WHERE: Library of the Canyons 7531 E. Santiago Canyon Road Silverado, CA 92676
WHAT: Fire officials will provide an update on the current status of the Bond Fire and will be available to answer questions following the meeting. For those not able to attend, the meeting will be recorded and posted online.
 
For those who cannot attend we will be posting the video to Facebook (http://https://www.facebook.com/OrangeCountyFire) and answering questions after the meeting.