Waldo Canyon Fire BAER Update 7-8-12
Incident: Waldo Canyon Fire Wildfire
Released: 7/8/2012
Waldo Canyon Fire
Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Update
July 8, 2012
Contact: Cathleen Thompson, BAER Information Officer (707-853-4243)
Current Fire Status
18,247 acres
98% containment
$15,333,671 Fire Suppression Cost to Date
Key BAER Messages
- The communities surrounding the Waldo Canyon Fire live in an environment where the canyons within the burned area can produce flash floods.
- For their safety, communities need to monitor local weather reports and public safety bulletins, along with local road closures, emergency notifications, weather alerts, follow local county advisories, and act accordingly.
- Multiple agencies, including the US Forest Service and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), are working together and coordinating with local cooperators who assist affected landowners prepare for rain events.
Status of BAER Efforts
The Waldo Canyon Fire Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team, composed of soil scientists, hydrologists, engineers, archaeologists, biologists, silviculturists, geographic information specialists and others was assembled and met on Thursday, July 5. The team met with representatives from the Incident Management Team and the Pike & San Isabel National Forests, Cimarron & Comanche National Grasslands and was updated on current fire status, outlook for the fire, and a presentation on safety for working within the burn area.
BAER Team Assessment Progress
- Specialists have begun their field work to ground truth and finalize a Soil Burn Severity Map for the Waldo Canyon burn area.
- The BAER Team is communicating with El Paso County and the City of Colorado Springs whose authorities include flood control, roads, water supply, and structural safety inspections.
- Other agencies the BAER team is coordinating with include the Natural Resources Conservation Service, CDOT, and local municipal government agencies.
- A schedule has been established for daily Team briefings.
- The Team has begun identifying basic Values-at-Risk (VAR) within and downstream of the burn area and will further refine the VAR through field work.
- Additional BAER Team updates will be provided as the Team's burned area assessment progresses.
