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Combine
hot, dry weather with several hundred lightening strikes
and you get six new fire starts in and around Mesa Verde
National Park. That was the situation facing Mesa Verde
fire fighters late that afternoon. With a local crew
of 15 firefighters, it was obvious that help was needed
to help get a hand on these fires.
Known for its world famous archaeological
sites, the park hosts several thousand visitors a day.
Along with the visitors are several hundred employees
and over 80 structures. With several large wildland
fires throughout its history, managing fire along with
these values at risk is quite a challenge. As the Mesa
Verde helitack and engine crews went to work on some
fires, a call went out for additional firefighting resources.
The order went into the Durango Interagency Fire Dispatch
Center for these resources. Shortly thereafter volunteer
firefighters all across Montezuma County dropped what
they were doing, climbed in their engines and headed
to Mesa Verde.
Over the years Mesa Verde has come
to depend on five neighboring fire protection districts
to assist the park with fire suppression in times of
need. These districts include Mancos FPD, Dolores FPD,
Cortez FPD, Lewis-Arriola FPD and Pleasantview FPD.
As with many fire districts, money to provide wildland
firefighting gear and training is often in short supply.
With this in mind these districts have taken part in
the Rural Fire Assistance program offered by the National
Park Service. With money received from this program,
the districts have been purchasing personal protective
equipment, including Nomex clothing, gloves, hardhats
and fire shelters as well as handtools and other equipment.
The goal of the program is to assure that every volunteer
firefighter has safe and functional wildland fire gear
and equipment.
Another success at Mesa Verde is the
Fire Education/ Community Assistance program. Through
this program, the park granted $15,000 to Montezuma
County in order to hire a fire education specialist.
The fire educator advised over 80 homeowners and 15
subdivisions on developing defensive space around their
homes and properties. In addition, residents who violated
fire restrictions were contacted and informed of current
regulations.
With these programs, Mesa Verde
hopes to continue the partnership with area fire districts
in managing fire safely and effectively.
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