Western Colorado is currently battling multiple uncontained wildfires, exacerbated by dry and windy weather conditions that are making firefighting efforts more challenging.
As firefighters work to contain the blazes, another group of wildfires has ignited in Douglas County, south of Denver. While the size and cause of these new fires remain undetermined, officials report that at least one fire has burned 20 acres in Chatfield State Park.
In response to the wildfires in Western Colorado, Governor Jared Polis has declared a disaster. This declaration pertains specifically to the South Rim fire located on the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, the Sowbelly fire affecting Montrose, Delta, and Mesa counties, as well as the Turner Gulch and Wright fires in Mesa County, and the Deer Creek fire. Additionally, a fifth fire has been detected in Utah, dangerously close to the Colorado state line.
Governor Polis’s disaster declaration serves to activate State Emergency Operations and Resource Mobilization Plans, enabling the deployment of emergency personnel who will assist county emergency managers in managing the situation.
According to reports from the Denver Post and fire officials, the western fires have consumed over 5,800 acres, all triggered by lightning during a storm last Thursday.
Currently, a dedicated team of nearly 200 firefighters is actively combating the fires, both on the ground and from the air. Mandatory evacuations have been put in place in the areas considered threatened, with officials confirming that evacuees have been safely relocated. Livestock in these affected areas are also being evacuated to ensure their safety.
Fire officials provided a daily update, indicating that crews are engaged in protective measures for critical infrastructure, including a dam and a power center, as well as preserving National Park Service buildings and cultural sites.
In other news, a paramedic has been charged with manslaughter relating to the death of a thirty-six-year-old man, an incident that occurred late last year. However, the investigation has only recently been concluded, as detailed in a press release from the Boulder County District Attorney’s office.
According to the statement, police from Boulder and the University of Colorado responded to 911 calls regarding a “suspicious person” at CU Boulder’s Center for Innovation & Creativity, leading to the arrest of the individual identified as Jesus Lopez Barcenas. Reports indicate that upon arrival, Barcenas was making incoherent statements and trying to damage property, prompting officers to confront him.
As Barcenas resisted arrest, law enforcement officers took action to bring him under control, which involved holding him face down on the ground. Paramedics were summoned to the scene, where Paramedic Edward McClure administered a sedative injection without conducting a proper medical assessment. Additionally, McClure applied restraints to place Barcenas on a gurney. Tragically, Barcenas succumbed to death two days later, with the cause ruled as sudden cardiac arrest, stemming from a combination of the physical confrontation, the sedative administered, the restraints used, and the effects of methamphetamine in his system.
Boulder County investigators concluded that law enforcement utilized only necessary force during the detainment. However, Paramedic Edward McClure has been found to have acted against established protocols and has since been terminated from his position with American Medical Response, as reported by Boulder Reporting Lab.
In related developments, the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC) is advocating for an inquiry from Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser regarding potential breaches of state law by local law enforcement and governmental bodies in terms of sharing personal information with federal immigration officials.
The coalition has gathered over 2,000 signatures for a petition delivered to Weiser’s office last Thursday, pressing for investigations and enforcing education on the state’s prohibitions surrounding the sharing of information in immigration matters unless essential for criminal investigations.
This request follows a recent ruling where a Denver judge blocked Governor Jared Polis from directing a state employee to comply with an ICE subpoena for information, asserting it was not pertinent to a criminal investigation.
Scott Moss, a state employee from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, reinforced the argument, noting that the information ICE sought did not have a bearing on criminal matters.
The petition also raises concerns over a specific incident involving a Utah college student who was arrested by ICE in Mesa County after local law enforcement allegedly shared her personal details through a Signal group chat, resulting in her detainment during a traffic incident.
Furthermore, the petition points out issues related to Flock Safety security cameras being utilized in supporting immigration enforcement, specifically referencing that Loveland’s Flock data was searched on behalf of ICE six times in April, as uncovered by 9News.
In a positive turn, $4 million in federal funding, previously frozen in February, has now been released to continue restoration efforts in the Upper Colorado River Basin and around Grand Lake.
Out of this total, $761,000 is allocated to assist the Kawuneeche Valley Restoration Collaborative in Grand County, a region severely affected by drought, failing irrigation systems, and overgrazing by wildlife. The valley plays a vital role in the upper watershed of the Colorado River.
The remaining $3.3 million will be distributed through the U.S. Forest Service to support watershed restoration initiatives in the Grand Lake area following the catastrophic East Troublesome fire in 2020, which devastated nearly 200,000 acres of land.
Former Grand Lake mayor Steve Kudron emphasized the importance of these restoration efforts, asserting that they are critical for sufficient cleanup and access, as parts of the forest had been off-limits to the public due to lack of funding, according to the Colorado Sun.
Moreover, a recent study conducted by researchers at CU Boulder reveals that the impacts of wildfire contaminants on water quality can persist for years after the occurrence of a fire.
This research highlights that contaminants such as organic carbon, phosphorus, and nitrogen can remain detectable in water for as long as eight years following a wildfire incident.
The findings, based on over 100,000 water samples collected from 500 watersheds across the western United States, indicate a crucial long-term effect of wildfires on local water resources. Approximately half of the samples were derived from areas previously affected by wildfires, emphasizing the ongoing risks and challenges posed by these natural disasters.
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