As you know, my family and I were evacuated Saturday afternoon on June 23 along with 11,000 other West side/Manitou Springs residents when the Waldo Canyon Fire erupted. According to the Colorado Springs fire public information unit and the city emergency operations center, local phone calls about the emerging blaze first came in around Saturday noon on June 23.
But what did the federal government officials know and when did they know it?
Waldo Canyon is located in the Pike National Forest.
According to a source, a group that included at least one federal firefighter was sent to look for fire on Friday night, not Saturday afternoon. The source added:
“Due to what I believe to be incompetence on the part of those managing the initial response to this incident, the Waldo Canyon fire was not located in a timely manner. I believe the ensuing tragedy that is now unfolding could have easily been prevented and thus view the actions of certain individuals as inexcusable.”
This morning, I talked to an official at the Colorado Springs fire public information unit who said that both her unit and the city emergency operations center were not aware of any fire search-related activity on Friday. I asked someone at the Joint Incident Command for their official timeline of when the fire began. They said Saturday, June 23.
Interestingly, federal fire investigators are seeking information from anyone who was in the Waldon Canyon or nearby Pyramid Mountain area on…Friday 6/22 or Saturday 6/23.
Wildland fire investigators are asking for the public’s help to solve the Waldo Canyon fire
Investigators are seeking the public’s help for possible leads to the exact cause of the Waldo Canyon Fire. U.S. Forest Service Investigators are looking for people who were in the Waldo Canyon area at or around time of ignition and may have seen something that will help the investigators. If you were in the Waldo Canyon or Pyramid Mountain area on Friday 6/22 or Saturday 6/23 please call 719-477-4205 and leave your name, contact number and someone will return your call. Investigators are hoping that with the public’s help, they can determine the cause of the Waldo Canyon Fire.
Waldo Canyon Fire Update
Rocky Basin 2 Incident Management Team
Incident Commander: Rich Harvey
For Immediate Release: date, time
Public Information: (719) 629-7322
Email for Media: waldojicfire@gmail.com
(email address for media use only please – give public phone number to use for information)
Phone for Media: (720) 202-8521
(Joint Information Center Open Daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.)
With so many national media reporters swarming our city and state to cover President Obama’s visit, it would be helpful if someone else would ask these questions.
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Updates:
-I am told the question about a Friday night fire search was raised at an early local press briefing, but not answered.
-I have contacted the feds for comment/info. Will update if they respond.
-A local notes that there was a “small campfire” one valley over from Waldo Canyon, but that it was “unrelated.” Not sure how he knows that.
Source: Michelle Malkin