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Rye Evacuations Continue As Aspen Acres Fire Nears 100,000 Acres
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Rye Evacuations Continue As Aspen Acres Fire Nears 100,000 Acres

By: Savannah Eller and Nick Smith | The Denver Gazette The wait has no end in sight for evacuated residents of Rye, near where the Aspen Acres fire continues to burn in rough, tinder-dry terrain to the west. While about 6,400 people have been able to return to communities like Colorado City, Wetmore and Beulah, Pueblo County Sheriff David Lucero told attendees at a community meeting Tuesday night that conditions were not yet safe for an additional 3,000 displaced people. “I wish I had the answer,” he said. The problem, explained Brad Washa, operations section chief with the Alaska Complex Incident Management Team, is fuel and weather. He said the part of the fire burning near St. Charles Peak is finding extremely receptive fuel in Engelman spruce trees, many of ...
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Firefighting Pilot Nicholas Dale Remembered After Fatal Colorado Helicopter Crash
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CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Firefighting Pilot Nicholas Dale Remembered After Fatal Colorado Helicopter Crash

By: Christa Swanson, Jesse Sarles | CBS Colorado A 56-year-old Canadian pilot who crashed into a Colorado reservoir in a firefighting helicopter and died over the weekend has been identified. Nicholas Dale, a frontline federal contracted fire aviation pilot from Sooke, British Columbia, was killed on Sunday when his aircraft crashed into the Silver Jack Reservoir in western Colorado. He was involved in the battle against the Gold Mountain Fire. His body was later recovered from the aircraft, a K-MAX helicopter. The Gunnison Sheriff's Office says the National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA are investigating the crash. The sheriff's office said in a news release it "offers its deepest condolences to Mr. Dale's family, friends, and fellow wildfir...
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Disaster Declaration Issued as Routt County Wildfires Threaten Communities
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Disaster Declaration Issued as Routt County Wildfires Threaten Communities

By: Eugene Buchanan | The Denver Gazette Kris and Jenn Shea of Steamboat Springs were lucky. When the evacuation orders came for their home near the new “Green Ridge Fire” — which erupted near Stagecoach Reservoir, about 15 miles south of Steamboat, on Sunday at 1:45 p.m. and quickly spread to 94.3 acres by that evening — they were both out of town. Jenn was in Buena Vista, and Kris was fishing in Florida. But their friends were there to rally support and grab their belongings.  Fortunately, it didn’t come to that as the order was soon rescinded. But for Kris, it was touch-and-go with the fire spotting just a mile or two away.  “It was pretty surreal,” said Kris, who owns Cruiser’s Sub Shop. “I was in the middle of the Gulf and felt a little handcuffed. My wi...
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Colorado ICE Detention Capacity Set to Nearly Double Under New Federal Contract
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Colorado Politics, Approved, Local

Colorado ICE Detention Capacity Set to Nearly Double Under New Federal Contract

By: Nico Brambila | Colorado Politics The federal government has signed a five-year contract with private prison company GEO Group that will effectively double Colorado’s immigration detention capacity to about 2,700 beds. Signed July 9, the contract comes a year after the Trump administration told Colorado’s congressional delegation it planned to reopen the shuttered Hudson Correctional Facility as an immigration detention center. The deal is worth up to $528.6 million, federal contracting records show. Located about 30 miles northeast of Denver in Weld County, the Hudson Correctional Facility is a medium-security prison that closed a decade ago. The prison is operated by the GEO Group, while the Highlands REIT Inc. — a real estate investment firm — owns it....
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False Bomb Threat Forces Evacuation of 4,000 From Water World
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

False Bomb Threat Forces Evacuation of 4,000 From Water World

By: Matt Kyle | The Denver Gazette Water World in Federal Heights was evacuated Saturday due to a false bomb threat. A spokesperson for Water World said the park received the “unverified threat” via a phone call. The spokesperson said the park was safely evacuated by 12:10 p.m. Federal Heights police said the call came in before noon. Commander Jason Schlenker said the caller had a robotic voice and alluded that there was a bomb in the park, 9NEWS reported. Police are now working to identify the caller. By about 4 p.m. that the park was secure and that there was no credible threat found in the park, police said. The park will be open as usual on Sunday. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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Polis Declares Disaster Emergency As Ferris Fire Tops 57,000 Acres
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CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Polis Declares Disaster Emergency As Ferris Fire Tops 57,000 Acres

By: Christa Swanson | CBS Colorado The growing Ferris Fire in southwest Colorado has consumed over 50,000 acres, prompting Colorado Gov. Jared Polis to declare a disaster emergency. On Wednesday, the governor's office announced the verbal declaration, which activates the State Emergency Operations Plan and increases the resources available for containment efforts. Ferris Fire moves up steep terrain in the Glade Creek area. Ferris Fire Incident Command READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT CBS COLORADO
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Second Amendment Lawsuit Targets Denver Gun Ban and State Magazine Limits
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Second Amendment Lawsuit Targets Denver Gun Ban and State Magazine Limits

By Deborah Grigsby | The Denver Gazette A lawsuit filed in federal court by three Denver residents and two gun rights groups aims to strike down the city’s “assault weapon” restrictions, along with bans on ammunition magazines holding 15 rounds or more. The complaint, filed on June 30 by Ray Elliott, Trevor Alley and Michael Vitco, along with the Firearms Policy Coalition and the Colorado State Shooting Association, an arm of the National Rifle Association, alleges Denver’s semiautomatic firearm ban is unconstitutional, as is its ban on 15-round or larger magazines. Naming the city government, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, Attorney General Phil Weiser, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Director Armando Saldate III, Colorado State Patrol Chief Col. Matthew Packard and Denve...
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Aspen Acres Fire Tops 91,000 Acres as New Evacuations Hit Fremont County
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The Colorado Sun, Approved, State

Aspen Acres Fire Tops 91,000 Acres as New Evacuations Hit Fremont County

By: Dana Coffield | The Colorado Sun The Willow fire near Leadville grew by 900 acres overnight spurring mandatory evacuation of areas southwest of the city. Ouray 100 race canceled because of Gold Mountain fire. The Aspen Acres fire southwest of Pueblo made another surge Sunday, bringing the total acres burned to 91,523, federal fire officials said, and making it the seventh largest wildfire on record in Colorado. Authorities said Thursday the fire was human-caused but released no further details about its origin as it raced northeast from near the Aspen Acres campground across Pueblo County, where it forced the evacuation of the towns of Beulah, Colorado City, Rye, San Isabel and Wetmore. Around 8:15 p.m. Sunday, the Fremont County sheriff issued a mandator...
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Grand Junction Pays Tribute to Three Firefighters Lost in Snyder Fire
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

Grand Junction Pays Tribute to Three Firefighters Lost in Snyder Fire

By Robert Garrison | Denver7 GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — The three firefighters killed in the Snyder Fire west of Grand Junction last month were remembered and honored during a memorial service Sunday. Federal firefighters Emily Barker, 38, Nick Hutcherson, 27, and Sydney Watson, 27, were killed June 27 fighting the more than 30,000-acre wildfire on the Colorado-Utah state line. Authorities said they were trying to shield themselves from flames by deploying tent-like shelters when they were overcome. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT DENVER7
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Colorado Crime Still Among Nation’s Worst Despite Drop in Auto Theft
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado Crime Still Among Nation’s Worst Despite Drop in Auto Theft

By: The Gazette Editorial Board | Commentary, The Denver Gazette The Polis administration’s announcement the other day touting a drop in Colorado’s nationally notorious rate of auto theft was welcome news — as long as it lasted. As The Gazette reported, the state Department of Public Safety released data late last month showing auto thefts were down this year by 36%, from January through May, compared with the same time frame last year. Then came the bad newS. Not one, but two people were shot to death in apparently separate incidents in Denver — both while trying to stop the theft of their cars — within days of the announcement. Yes, motor vehicle theft still poses a very serious threat in our state. And it shouldn’t come as a surprise.  Accordin...
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