More than 30,000 evacuated as most destructive
wildfires in Colorado state history raze
at least 600 homes, a shopping center
and a hotel to the ground: Six injured
but authorities warn to expect fatalities
Daily Mail (UK),
by
Harriet Alexander
&
Adriana Diaz
Original Article
Posted By: Imright,
12/31/2021 1:15:02 AM
Colorado's governor has issued a state of emergency as two wildfires sweep the grasslands around Boulder, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people and destroying 600 homes - the most devastating loss of homes in Colorado's wildfire history.Six people were taken to hospital with burns said Kelli Christensen, a spokeswoman for UC Health in Broomfield, speaking to The Colorado Sun, but Colorado officials on Thursday night said there were no reports of fatalities..Thousands of frightened residents have been ordered to evacuate after strong winds downed power lines and caused a transformer to explode, sparking two fast-moving grass fires, according to the Boulder County Sheriff's Office.
Reply 1 - Posted by:
DVC 12/31/2021 1:30:39 AM (No. 1023776)
Three years ago, a fire set accidentally by a doped up illegal alien from the Netherlands burned for 15 miles through forests and homes, about 400 of them before they stopped it, finally. It was stopped 200 yds short of my cabin in the mountains, so I can feel for these poor people.
100 mph winds can really drive a fire. Last time I was in that part of Colorado, I noticed that they still had a lot of cedar shake roofs, but that's been a few years. We recover cedar shakes when roofs are replaced to use for kindling in our wood stove. They REALLY light easily....a horrible material for a roof, now banned in the surrounding communities here in eastern KS, but was the "cool, quality" material for 30 years.
I don't know if that contributed to the spread of the fire, but if there were still cedar shake roofs....really bad.
When one of these sort of firestorms gets going, most roofs will catch, but normal shingles are considered 'fire resistant'.
I hope everyone got out. Stuff can be replaced, although it's painful.
17 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
bighambone 12/31/2021 1:43:05 AM (No. 1023780)
Don’t worry Biden has a plan. When he can find time between his Delaware vacations he will pay Colorado a short visit.
16 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
Trigger2 12/31/2021 1:45:46 AM (No. 1023782)
If you don't remove brush and dead trees, this is the result. The eco-terrorists feel good about it and they can blame global warming for their ineptness.
21 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
bldrrepub 12/31/2021 4:58:35 AM (No. 1023845)
Most of the homes lost were in suburban subdivisions. There’s no brush or fallen trees to remove. Boulder County has prohibited cedar shake roofs in most of the unincorporated areas while some cities in the area have done the same.
With 100+ MPH chinook winds driving airborne embers this was truly an act of God.
17 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
TCloud 12/31/2021 6:46:52 AM (No. 1023877)
Denver's ABC live feed was continually interrupted by News Broadcasters blaming Global Warming as though like a Religious enthusiasm!
16 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
Highlander 12/31/2021 7:46:15 AM (No. 1023932)
A friend who worked in the forest service as a firefighter, told me how a wooden shed burst into flames being just a hundred yards from the actual fire. That tells you how terrible these fires are. In case you doubt, I stood at the side of the road in Northern California to take pictures of a raging inferno consuming full-grown conifers. The heat was really hot on my skin even though it looked to be 300 or more yards away. Scary.
11 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
zephyrgirl 12/31/2021 8:08:35 AM (No. 1023964)
These fires are in suburban neighborhoods. The fires started in grass in the open spaces, then quickly spread by fierce winds (100 MPH gusts) into the suburban neighborhoods. Part of the problem is the houses are built too close together - one catches fire, and everything around it catches as well. In a matter of minutes, a whole subdivision is a raging inferno. Very sobering for those of us who think we're safe in a suburban neighbohood.
8 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
ussjimmycarter 12/31/2021 8:11:06 AM (No. 1023969)
Brandon has ordered the immediate recruitment of Gay people to train for the next two years as fire fighters! He has the fires totally under control!
10 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
Paperpuncher 12/31/2021 8:28:32 AM (No. 1023984)
So, it never occurred to them earlier in the year when conditions were right to perform controlled burns which would have either prevented this catastrophe or lessened the impact dramatically. Way to go. Just following California’s lead.
5 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
red1066 12/31/2021 9:38:42 AM (No. 1024075)
That area is mostly flat grass land leading up to the mountains. The wind comes down the slope off the mountains and winds of thirty miles an hour or more are not all that unusual. Once that dried grass catches fire and the wind starts to blow, there's not much that can be done to stop it from reaching the housing developments to the east. When the winds reach close to a hundred mph, it's Katey bar the door. Over the last twenty years, there has been a lot of housing built in those areas north of Denver.
9 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
DVC 12/31/2021 11:28:26 AM (No. 1024230)
I don't think this is like the California fires where there is a lot of brush and small trees near homes which help spread the fires. These are regular suburban tract homes, with a large wild grassland, with a few shrubby areas along creeks, that is west of the suburban homes, in the mountain foothills. The fires started in these wild grasslands in the foothills and the strong downslope winds, blowing west to east pushed what were essentially grass fires into the suburban areas. Embers carry a long way in 80-100 mph winds.
5 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
Vaquero45 12/31/2021 12:19:33 PM (No. 1024282)
These fires were started when high winds blew down a couple of utility poles that had transformers on them. The transformers blew up when they hit the ground, sending sparks everywhere. It appears that the local utility companies should have spent a lot of money burying their electrical lines instead of suspending them. This could have been prevented.
1 person likes this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
MickTurn 12/31/2021 1:46:04 PM (No. 1024379)
Build fire traps and this is what you get...Leftists have NO CLUE how to manage anything!
0 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
Birddog 12/31/2021 2:14:53 PM (No. 1024417)
Natives in that area used to set fires like this every couple of years...the burn scars grow back greener, which drew the Buffalo.
I'd like to see the calculations of just how much "Global Warming" this particular fire "Contributed"
2 people like this.
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