More than 100 displaced residents gathered in the gymnasium of Nederland Middle-Senior High School on Sunday to find out if the day’s unnerving weather conditions would steer the flames of the Cold Springs fire in the direction of their homes.
Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said major concern throughout Sunday lies with the high winds and high temperatures that are expected. He said crews plan to “pound the crap out of this thing today” but that the wind conditions were scary.
“The forecast for today is bleak. We’re preparing for the worst, but we’re hoping for the best,” said Michael Smith of the incident management team, saying it’s likely “not going to be a short process.”
Smith said as of noon Sunday, the fire was at 0 percent containment, and Sunday’s forecast predicts only 14 to 16 percent humidity, with winds up to 35 mph out of the south and west.
Boulder Canyon has also temporarily closed while helicopters sling buckets of water from the reservoir, over the ridge and toward the fire.
“If Mother Nature does what forecasters say, it’s going to be a rough day,” Smith said.
ʱDzԴھ the loss of three structures as of Sunday afternoon, but said that number accounts only for “confirmed losses,” and it will likely increase throughout the day.
Officials also said the fire is headed in an easterly direction.
Megan Newton, a Nederland resident, appeared noticeably distraught during the news conference after hearing the flames were likely headed in the direction of her home.
“We were eating lunch at home, and we had just sat down with our food and it looked fine outside. Then 20 minutes later, we saw smoke was rising, and then flames were visible from our deck,” Newton said. “The food we were eating for lunch is still sitting on there on the kitchen table.”
Rich Lampright, who lives in Nederland during the summer, said it was pretty obvious he would have to evacuate Saturday when breathing became difficult later in the afternoon because of smoke.
“You’d walk outside, and within 30 minutes there were layers of soot on my car that looked like 10 years’ accumulation of dust,” Lampright said. “During the summer months, the windows are open at night, and I can always get whiffs of smoke from what I assume are campfires. But in this area, you never know if it’s from a campfire, or if it’s a forest fire.”
Lampright said because of the high risk of wildfires in the area, he keeps important documents and paperwork stashed in briefcases for when it becomes necessary to pack up valuables quickly during evacuation.
Crowd of evacuees at Nederland HS ahead of public information conference from fire officials
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For Shilo Hall, also a Nederland resident, deciding what to take and what to leave behind was “surreal, to say the least.”
“I just kept asking, what do I put a value on, and how?” Hall said.
Hall and her husband, who have been staying with friend Jimmy Miley, have been able to watch fire crews dropping retardant on the fires from Miley’s house on the south side of the reservoir, an area designated out of the threat of the fire.
“It’s just heartbreaking to think about people possibly losing their homes. And it’s surreal to sit here and wonder whether what you’re looking at is the patch of fire that’s close to your home or not,” Hall said. “Living in the mountains and it being so beautiful here … and for rumors to be saying it was man-made … it’s just scary to think how quickly something so beautiful can be destroyed. It’s frustrating.”
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Pelle said residents who fled their homes quickly can seek out officials at designated checkpoints. Depending on home addresses and proximity to the fire, they will escort people to their homes to fetch items such as medicine and pets.
The Rocky Mountain Type 2 Incident Management Team has been ordered to take over operations as of 8:30 p.m. Sunday, Pelle said. The Type 2 team, a federally certified team, will take over for the Type 3 team, compiled of crews from different departments, agencies, and jurisdictions at a state level, who have been fighting the fire since it began Saturday afternoon.
Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper issued an executive order Sunday for the Colorado National Guard to assist the incident commander with fire response, providing over 50 soldiers and airmen for aerial firefighting and securing capabilities, according to a news release.
The Boulder Peak Triathlon was also canceled while public safety officials are relocated to assist fire operations.
An Ozone Action Day Alert has been issued as of 4 p.m. by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, affecting a large portion of the state along the Front Range.