Wildfire – The Durango Herald

Power in numbers? Three Durango-area entities to tackle wildfire mitigation

Group seeks to expand, accelerate efforts to alleviate threats

DATE: Nov 24, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Report says it takes too long to deliver federal money to areas hit by floods, wildfires

Sen. Bennet aims to improve the Emergency Watershed Protection Program

DATE: Nov 18, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Pilot death is second amid late season wildfires in Rockies

DENVER – Authorities on Wednesday were investigating the death of a pilot who crashed while fighting a wildfire near Rocky Mountain National Park at night, the second person to die amid wind...

DATE: Nov 17, 2021 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Fire drill proves to be good practice for next generation of wildland firefighters

Outdoor workshop breaks down issues around fuels, topography and weather

DATE: Nov 17, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Durango and Montrose interagency wildfire dispatch centers could close down

Proposal recommends consolidation from six dispatch centers to three in Colorado

DATE: Nov 3, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Colorado doesn’t have a statewide building code. Would enacting one help protect homes against wildfire?

A handful of state lawmakers are interested in the idea, in part to secure more federal dollars

DATE: Oct 25, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Durango receives funding to do wildfire mitigation around neighborhoods that border overgrown wildlands

$146,000 grant will help reduce fire risk near residential structures

DATE: Oct 18, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

In high-risk Southwest Colorado, fire chiefs point to wildfire areas of concern

Interactive maps help residents see address-by-address where mitigation is needed

DATE: Sep 20, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Ice Lakes Trail near Silverton to reopen after last year’s wildfire

San Juan National Forest crews cleared more than 5 miles of debris

DATE: Sep 14, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Longer wildfire seasons lead to burnout among Southwest Colorado firefighters

Blazes start in April and extend through November: ‘We’re all missing our kids’ birthdays’

DATE: Sep 13, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Bennet says legislation could help fund fire mitigation efforts in Durango

Senator discusses potential benefit of Outdoor Restoration Partnership Act for Southwest Colorado

DATE: Sep 8, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Forced medication approved for wildfire suspect, lawyers say

DENVER – A judge has approved the forced medication of a mentally ill Danish man accused of starting a wildfire that burned 149 homes in Colorado in 2018, lawyers said Wednesday. The develop...

DATE: Sep 8, 2021 | CATEGORY: Regional News

Photos: Parade launches 2024 Connie Mack World Series in FarmingtonFans line street as players march on Main Damp, overcast weather cooled off the crowd lining Main Street on Friday morning for the 2024 Connie Mack World Series Parade. The hourlong parade began shortly after 10 a.m. in front of an enthusiastic crowd.

Fans line street as players march on Main

Photos: ‘Mini Takes the States’ tour stops in DurangoHundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Hundreds of Mini Cooper vehicles occupy Fort Lewis College on Sunday; Participants began the journey in Albuquerque and will finish in Seattle

Photos: Boxing returns to DurangoAnimus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Animus on the Animas: 1st Annual Durango Boxing Classic at the Durango Main Mall on Saturday

Photos and video: Going for the gold by devouring piesContestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Contestants try their best to win the Oscar’s Pie Eating Contest on Friday in Durango

Photo: Fireworks light the sky in DurangoDurango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Durango celebrates Independence Day on Thursday night

Photos: Working with woodLocal craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

Local craftsman uses wood joinery, rather than nails or screws to construct homes and other structures

2024 Fourth of July Parade draws crowd Thursday in downtown Durango

Photos: Downtown Durango hosts Fourth of July ParadeDowntown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Downtown sidewalks were full for Thursday’s celebration

Durango Rotary Club, Parks and Recreation department host Independence Day events

Law enforcement conducts active threat training at Park Elementary SchoolResidents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

Law enforcement agencies across Southwest Colorado sent officers to participate in active threat training this week at Park Elementary School in Durango. Those in the neighborhood can expect police vehicles parked on the premises, officers in tactical gear conducting exercises inside and outside the school, and signs advising that training is in progress. The sounds of shouting, airsoft weapons and the popping of a starter pistol will also be audible near the school, said Karla Sluis, spokeswoman for Durango School District 9-R.Sluis said that members of the school district’s safety department have gone door-to-door with flyers notifying residents around Park Elementary School about the training.

Hosted by the Durango Police Department and the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office, this week’s voluntary training invited officers from law enforcement agencies across a five-county region of Southwest Colorado encompassing La Plata, Archuleta, San Juan, Montezuma and Dolores counties.

La Plata County Sheriff’s Office deputy Durango Police Department Deputy Mike Latham, lead instructor for this week's training, said Wednesday and the first half of Thursday were mostly preparatory, teaching officers the school’s layout and devising scenarios, whereas the latter half of Thursday and Friday residents should anticipate some noise as active threat scenarios play out.

Latham said active threat training teaches officers proper protocol during active threat scenarios, especially in densely populated areas where they have become increasingly common.Park Elementary School is not the only Durango School District facility law enforcement has conducted active threat training. Latham said schools lend themselves well to this sort of training because, “It gives us all kinds of doors to work on, different rooms, different scenarios we can run. We can pretend it’s a mall with nice big corridors, we can even pretend it’s an outdoor area in the gymnasium.”Latham has participated in active threat training multiple times in the past and described the drills as exhilarating and nerve-wracking. He said one of the training’s main goals is teaching officers how to manage stress and remain calm with lives on the line.

“I take a pulse oximeter in the morning and get a baseline on their heart rates,” Latham said. “And sometimes, just before they’re about to engage a threat, I say ‘Timeout.’ Put it (the oximeter) on there, and their heart rate’s skyrocketed to 140, 150, 160 just in training.”

Latham said throughout his career active threat training has evolved to become safer for officers and fall in line with increasingly professional police standards.“When I first started we were just running into halls and rooms hoping for the best,” Latham said. “Now the tactic is still to get there, still stop the taking of lives, but tactics are much better than they were 20 years ago.”

Residents may see and hear police activity Thursday and Friday

Power in numbers? Three Durango-area entities to tackle wildfire mitigation

Report says it takes too long to deliver federal money to areas hit by floods, wildfires

Pilot death is second amid late season wildfires in Rockies

Fire drill proves to be good practice for next generation of wildland firefighters

Durango and Montrose interagency wildfire dispatch centers could close down

Colorado doesn’t have a statewide building code. Would enacting one help protect homes against wildfire?

Durango receives funding to do wildfire mitigation around neighborhoods that border overgrown wildlands

In high-risk Southwest Colorado, fire chiefs point to wildfire areas of concern

Ice Lakes Trail near Silverton to reopen after last year’s wildfire

Longer wildfire seasons lead to burnout among Southwest Colorado firefighters

Bennet says legislation could help fund fire mitigation efforts in Durango

Forced medication approved for wildfire suspect, lawyers say

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