To the Nederland Community,
We know many of you are hurting and concerned about the advancement of the Cold Springs Fire. We all want more frequent information out of the fire zone, and unfortunately, with the way these events are managed and coordinated, the amount of information provided does not always meet the expectations of the community.
We at the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), operating out of the Office of Emergency Management, are based in Boulder. Our role is to support the fire fighting operations that are currently being managed on-scene by the Rocky Mountain Black Team, a “Type 2” Incident Management Team that is highly experienced and skilled in firefighting and has a solid set of resources behind it. The primary focus at this time is fighting the fire and making sure that all available resources are directed to that purpose. There is a support team of on-scene Public Information Officers (PIOs) that are working to get information out about the firefighting efforts as soon as possible.
The EOC is activated to help support the infrastructure needs around the fire. In other words, we’re the team that issues evacuations if the Incident Management Team signals that the fire might move in a certain direction, orders resources to support firefighters, controls traffic around the fire zone, coordinates the evacuation centers and shelters, helps move displaced animals to safety, continues with law enforcement, messages to the public through this website and social media, runs the public call center, and performs many other functions in support of the local community.
The Sheriff’s Office investigative teams are responsible for investigating fire damage to property and releasing that information when it is confirmed. We know this is an extremely sensitive matter, and one that can cause a great deal of stress for anyone with a home or business in the fire zone. We sincerely regret that this information cannot be known as quickly as people would like, and we also know it causes a lot of friction between emergency responders and the community when people don’t know if their residence is safe. Very soon, we will be releasing information about two additional homes that we know have been destroyed in the fire. Out of respect to the homeowners, we are trying to get in touch with them first before making that information public.
Please know that we are working as hard as we can to get this – and all – information to you in a timely manner. If you have specific questions that you’d like to see us address, PLEASE post or send us a message on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BoulderOEM/. We are YOUR source for official information about the Cold Springs Fire, and we want to serve your needs in getting you information that is important and relevant to you.
Also, our call center continues to be open to take calls from the community at 303-413-7730.
Thank you for your understanding and patience.
Your Emergency Operations Center staff and volunteers
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