Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Udall has asked for a state and federal review of the Fourmile Canyon fire to determine whether the nation’s aerial tanker fleet should be beefed up and examine other issues related to the blaze.
“It nags at me that if you look at the inventory of aircraft, and their age,” the fleet might not be adequate, he said during a conference call with media Thursday.
He isn’t prejudging the condition of the fleet, he said, but questions remain about its adequacy and the contracting system under which it operates.
“The Forest Service is actively exploring and evaluating various options to meet the need for air tankers in the future,” said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Joe Walsh. “In the meantime, we are utilizing the fleet of aircraft we have to maintain a very high initial attack success rate.”
The nation’s firefighting fleet is a mix of planes — many of them more than a half-century old — and helicopters. The complex contracting system in place sometimes results in aircraft close to the fire being passed over for aircraft farther away.
Fire officials said high winds and thick smoke that reduced visibility sometimes grounded the air tankers and helicopters in the Fourmile fire but that the aircraft arrived quickly and were used effectively.
The Forest Service estimates it will take $2.5 billion to replace the leased fleet of heavy air tankers, which cost up to $75 million each, according to an audit by the U.S. Department of Agriculture last summer.
Udall praised firefighters and said that without the coordinated air and ground response, the damage would have been far worse.
He wants the Colorado State Forest Service and U.S. Forest Service to form a Fourmile Canyon fire review panel as soon as possible.
A review of the blaze could help the state become better prepared for future wildfires, he said. He wants to know more about how the fire spread and how to restore damaged land.
“On the Front Range, with so many homes, and roads, utilities, watersheds and facilities, it’s important to better understand how fire behaves,” Udall said.
Gov. Bill Ritter on Thursday issued an executive order making up to $900,000 available to communities to help them protect drinking-water supplies in the aftermath of the Fourmile Canyon and Reservoir Road wildfires.
Officials say the Boulder fire has cost nearly $10 million and the Loveland fire about $1.9 million.
The AP contributed to this report.
