Flagstaff Fire Boulder “live TV” Day 1

Jann Scott and Boulder Channel 1 spend 30 minutes at the staging area at FairView High looking at fire, air tankers and talking with folks on the scene.

June 26 — Flagstaff Fire 9 p.m. update
Update:
Only 26 homes have been evacuated near Bison Drive and Kossler Lake.
A total of 2,416 reverse notifications have been sent to people in and around the affected area.
Three helicopters and two tanker planes were working the fire until sunset.
About 100 firefighters are on the ground doing structure protection through the night.
The fire is burning in upper Skunk Canyon. just west of the NIST/NOAA campus, and expected to produce smoke in Boulder through the night.
A Federal Type 1 team is expected to take over management of the fire on Wednesday.
All Pets Animal Hospital, 5290 Manhattan Circle, 303-499-5335, is open 24 hours and is accepting small animals. In the case of an evacuation, small animals can be dropped off at All Pets if their owners are unable to take them with them in the case of an evacuation.
No structures are threatened at this time.
There are no reported injuries and there is zero percent containment of the approximately 300 acre fire.

June 26 – 9 p.m. – Fire is burning on City of Boulder Open Space
#FlagstaffFire is burning in Upper Skunk Canyon, just west of NIST/NOAA, and expected to produce smoke in Boulder through the night. Only the original 26 homes that were evacuated near Bison Drive have been evacuated. A remaining 2,416 notifications were sent out to city residents near Flagstaff to remain on standby in case of a change in fire direction and behavior overnight. The Emergency Operations Center will remain open on a 24/7 basis until further notice.

June 26 – 8:10 p.m. – Smoke-related health tips available
Information about steps individuals can take to protect themselves from negative health effects related to the smoke is available at: http://www.bouldercounty.org/env/air/pages/wildfire.aspx

June 26 – 8 p.m. – Evacuation center location moved to East Boulder Community Center
The Red Cross has closed the evacuation center at New Vista High School and established an evacuation center and overnight shelter at the East Boulder Community Center, 5660 Sioux Drive. People impacted by the fire who need information and/or a place to stay overnight are encouraged to go to that location.

June 26 – 7:50 p.m. – Update on firefighting efforts
Fire officials have provided an update on attack efforts. The fire has consumed an estimated 228 acres and is moving east in both the north and south directions. There are about 200 firefighters working this incident at this time from the following agencies: Rocky Mountain Fire, Coal Creek Fire, City of Boulder Fire, Boulder County Fire, Arapahoe and Roosevelt Forest Service, the Colorado State Fire Service, Lafayette Fire, Longmont Fire, Boulder Rural Fire, Boulder Emergency Squad and the Longmont Emergency Unit. The incident is currently being managed by the Boulder County Type 3 Incident Management Team.

Air attacks continue to be the primary strategy for as long as daylight remains. There are currently three Type 1 helicopters, one Type 3 helicopter, two heavy air tankers, a lead plane and an air attack plane working the fire.

A federal Type 1 team is expected to take over command sometime tomorrow morning.

June 26 – 7:15 p.m. – City firefighting task force headed to upper Table Mesa area
Three spot fires are visible on the eastern side of the ridge behind NCAR. A task force of 40 firefighters are headed to the area of upper Table Mesa to attack these fires and create defensible space for homes and structures in the vicinity. Winds are now blowing to the northeast and have picked up in speed.

June 26 – 6:40 p.m. – Media briefing scheduled for 8:30 p.m.
Fire officials are planning to hold a media briefing with updates on the fire at 8:30 p.m. at the Criminal Justice Center at 6th and Canyon.

June 26 – 6 p.m. – Call center activated
The Emergency Operations Center has activated a call center for residents and others impacted by the fire to obtain information. The phone number is 303-413-7730. People seeking fire and evacuation information are encouraged to call this number. Individuals reporting new emergencies should continue to call 911. Media should continue to contact the media line. Any help getting this phone number out to the public is much appreciated.

June 26 5:45 p.m. – Additional pre-evacuation notices sent out in city
The City of Boulder has issued 1,485 additional pre-evacuation notices to phone numbers within city limits to include the Shanahan Ridge neighborhood. This is in addition to the 931 notices previously sent out. The current boundaries are Dartmouth to the north, Greenbriar to the south, Table Mesa and foothills on the west and Broadway on the east.

Residents in this area should begin preparing for possible evacuation orders. Gather up personal belongings and pets and stay tuned for additional instructions. An evacuation center has been established at New Vista High School at Broadway and Baseline.

In addition, the City of Boulder has announced that it is closing the pool at the South Boulder Recreation Center as a result of poor air quality caused by smoke. The recreation center itself remains open. For parents with children participating in summer camps, staff are continuing to monitor the situation and will issue e-mail updates as they become available.

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