Wildland Fire – 07/02/11 – Archuleta County, CO

On July 2nd, 2011 at 1512 hours, the Los Pinos Fire District was dispatched to the area of Mile Marker 30 on County Road 500 in unincorporated Archuleta County for a report of a Wildland Fire. Southern Ute Police Dispatch was receiving reports of numerous fires in the area caused by a thunderstorm that had passed through the area. The areas “fire jurisdiction” was unknown and additional resources from the Bureau of Indian Affairs - Southern Ute Agency (BIA-SUA) Fire Management were also dispatched.

Three lightning caused fires were discovered in the area, with one actually being across the New Mexico State Line in the Carracas Mesa area of the Carson National Forest. Brush 68 from the Upper Pine Fire District (assigned to the BIA-SUA on a severity detail) and Los Pinos Fire District’s Brush 81 arrived on the south side of the San Juan River, off County Road 557, on what would become the “Chavez Fire.” Both units started to take action on the blaze. Air resources in the form of a Type 3 Helitac crew from the Mesa Verde National Park were requested to perform a recon of the area and to provide “bucket drops” on the Chavez Fire. Units from BIA-SUA, Los Pinos Fire, and Archuleta County Office of Emergency Management provided initial fire attack on the ground.

Gusty winds and increased fire activity in the area caused the initial attack resources to withdraw from the fire until water drops from the helicopter could knock down some of the more active burning. Shortly after this move it was discovered that the fire had jumped the San Juan River and started to burn on private property along County Road 500. Resources from the original fire were redeployed across the river, and the between the efforts of the helicopter and ground forces, managed to contain the fire. Additional resources were ordered up to assist with the control of the fires on both sides of the river. The fire grew to approximately 5 acres and suppression efforts continued into the night.