The cause of the 416 wild fire near Durango has not been identified while everybody knows it was started by the coal engine of the train (which spews embers in the air and starts fires regularly). The Forest Service said it is “still investigating” the cause of the fire, still one month later! This looks like a cover-up (because the train is a major tourist attraction?). All clues point to the historic train: witnesses accounts and photos showing the start of the fire right at the train tracks. People in the community are very angry because the fire has had severe economical impact (people have been furloughed, evacuated from their houses, tourists have avoided the area due to smoke and shut-down trails), and health impact (we were living in a cloud of smoke every day for a month). The fire will also have long term economical impact (including loss of property value, costs of remediating the burnt area, long-term loss of tourism and recreation business), and ecological impact (loss of wildlife and habitat in the burnt area). We need to pressure the Forest Service to name the cause of the fire so the community can recover the direct and indirect costs of the fire (the DSNGR has insurance) and take measures so this never happens again (e.g., run the train with diesel engines).
Cecile Patrick
Durango
