New Procedure for Reporting Wildland Fires and Requesting Assistance
Please share with all interested parties.
House Bill 12-1283 transfers
the wildland fire prevention and suppression operations from Colorado State
Forest Service to the Division of Fire Prevention and Control (“DFPC”), within
the Colorado Department of Public Safety, effective July 1,
2012.
After June 30, 2012 the point
of contact for counties to report wildland fires and/or request assistance with
wildland fires, the Wildfire Emergency Response Fund, or for assistance with
Emergency Fire Fund (EFF) analysis or designation for wildfire should call the
State of Colorado Emergency Operations Line at 303-279-8855.
Upon request, the on-duty
communications personnel of the Colorado Department of Public Safety will
dispatch the closest available resource that is capable of providing rapid
technical assistance and support to local agencies and facilitate the Emergency
Fire Fund (EFF) assessment and application process. In addition to providing
technical assistance and support to local authorities, the individuals will be
qualified to assist in the completion of severity assessments on wildfires and
assisting in the identification of resource needs, developing assumption of duty
forms, completing delegations of authority, negotiating and signing cost share
agreements, and providing direction and oversight to assigned Incident
Management Teams.
While the Colorado State Forest
Service (CSFS) will no longer be the point of contact or have responsibility and
authority for wildfire in Colorado, the CSFS is committed to a seamless
transition in order to ensure continuous and effective service to the county
Sheriffs and other local authorities, as well as to the citizens of the State of
Colorado.
If you have any questions about the new procedure you can contact Interim Director Paul Cooke with the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control at 303-239-4600. And, as always, you can contact your local Field Manager with the Office of Emergency Management for assistance and support.
