Fire near Colorado Springs

D

dohdean

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The Academy and cadets are not in danger; but if you live elsewhere in the country you may seen coverage regarding the number of fires now burning in Colorado, including the Waldo Canyon fire near Colorado Springs.

If you would like to watch the local News channel about the fire, you can
try this:

go to KKTV.com

Click on NEWS

click on Live Stream

Click on Waldo Canyon Fire
 
I was around Powers last night for dinner, and on the drive to Tejon Street for a stop at the bars, we saw the fires burning. It was a really cool site to see.
 
That last comment doesn't reflect how most Colorado residents feel about these fires. They are not a "cool sight to see." People are losing and have lost homes -- in Estes Park area 20 or more homes/structures burned yesterday. The fire west of Fort Collins is now at more than 82,000 acres with more than 200 structures/homes burned-- the second largest fire in Colorado history. Many people are currently evacuated. My point -- the purpose of the original post -- was to give concerned parents of current cadets and future Basics a resource they can go to for information if you are concerned re the fire burning west of Colorado Springs. The hot, dry weather in Colorado is hampering fire fighting efforts -- you can get updates off the national news or through the local Colorado Springs news.
 
Don't get me wrong, I know it is a horrible tragedy, but beauty comes in all forms. Think of a school of jellyfish. If you were to swim too close to them, you'd pretty much be dead. By no means was I trying to belittle the dangers of the fire, I was just simply saying, the glowing flames in the distant mountains was a cool site to see.
 
Evacuation order for Manitou Springs has been lifted. It is starting to die down.
 
We were visiting the Academy, when my dad and I saw the small puff of smoke slowly grow into the huge blaze/smoky haze that is now floating over Tejon and Colorado Springs. Neither of us thought it could get this bad.

I really hope that this fire does not advance over the ridge that it's behind. There are homes right there. At least for now, the good news is that there hasn't been structural damage, and USAFA itself is safe.

I'm kinda curious: With all the ash and smoke and stuff that is around the area, I wonder if it will affect the cadets that will be arriving for BCT in like 3-4 days... I hope that it's not as big a health concern as the news is making it out to be; beast is tough enough without sputtering coughs.

They said they're sending in 2 C130s in to drop some flame retardant on the Waldo Canyon fire. (I'm not gonna lie, I'm very excited to see this) I'm glad that the AF is helping out! The KKTV11 station also said that they sent in Navy Seal Firefighters, and have the most elite of firefighters battling this blaze. I hope that they remain safe...

(On a side note, I'm very very amazed at the awesome helpful community spirit of the Colorado Springs natives. So many kind people came together to help out the people that had to evacuate!)


I took this picture about an hour or two after the fire started: http://distilleryimage11.s3.amazonaws.com/dde79a62bd6f11e1b9f1123138140926_7.jpg

It is much more hazy now.
 
Last edited:
Dohdean,

Can you give us an update on how it is at the AFA today as far as smoke and visibility? I think I recall that you work on campus but I may have that wrong. Our cadet is to start Powered Flight today. Hoping there is a good amount of ground training first as I doubt they could get airborne with the helos working the fire out of the AFA airstrip.
 
I don't work at the Academy -- live about 1.5 hours north of there in Boulder. Check the Academy website -- I think they are probably posting updates for Academy personnel, etc. on the website.
 
Colorado Springs for the most part is relatively clear, very hot though. I have had the windows in my room open with no smell of smoke. As far as the Academy airfield, they are letting the fire department use it for some of the aircraft in the area as it is closer to the fire than Peterson. I do not believe the cadets are using it at all right now. I would think that powered flight, not unlike jump, has several training days before they go up. DD said Jump would not be airborne until Thursday, they have several days of ground training. I could be wrong though.
 
I didn't see any relevant notams for the airfield, but they might not notam that stuff, since ops is pretty much all internal.
 
Posted on AOG forum yesterday: My fiancé is on the Flying Team at USAFA, and he had two flights scheduled for tomorrow morning, and he received notification that the airfield is now under restricted airspace because the firefighting and news-crews are using the USAFA airfield for their efforts. He doesn't know how long it will be closed off, but that affects all flights in and out of there

Posted on AOG forum today: UPDATE: He just texted me and told me that the Airfield is already restricted TOMORROW too.
 
Powered flight finished ground training this am and have the rest of the day off. Just day to day as to when they will be able to resume training but all the rest of their training is in the air.
 
The Academy has established a page related to the fire. If you friend the Academy's Face Book page you can get current information on the fire and the Academy. I copied the following entries from this (Tuesday's) afternoon off the Academy Face Book page (sorry the formatting is a little messed up but you can get the general gist and go to the appropriate pages/sites).


While there is currently no imminent fire danger to the base, the Academy has established the webpage below to provide the most current information relevant to Academy personnel and their families. (GM)

United States Air Force Academy - Fire
www.usafa.af.mil.
Like · · Share · 29713 · about an hour ago ·

Sorry folks, we had to cancel the Fourth of July celebration due to the fire. No other changes at this time. (RH)


Academy cancels July 4th events due to Waldo Canyon Fire
www.usafa.af.mil
Air Force Academy officials have cancelled all July 4th events on base due to the Waldo Canyon fire. The fireworks display has been cancelled due to dry conditions. Academy officials feel it is in the best interest of the community to focus all efforts on the continuing firefighting o
 
Our son said they have been put on pre-evacuation status. A nightmare with 1000 new basics coming in on Thursday.
 
The Giant Voice on base gave a pre-evacuation order for the housing side of base. That means that they need to start getting ready just in case.
 
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