A wildfire, fueled by tinder-dry timber and whipped by 40 MPH winds, has consumed 7500 acres so far just west of Glenwood Springs, Colorado. The blaze, named toe Coal Seam Fire for aburning underground coal seam believed to be the cause, started at the base of Storm King Mountain and has so far destroyed 40 structures, and threatens the town. 3,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes in the face of the fire, which so far is uncontained. Due to the violent, turbulent nature of this fire, Interstate 70 was closed between Rifle and Wolcott; this stretch includes New Castle, Silt, Gypsum, and the scenic Glenwood Canyon. UP's ex-Rio Grande line, which parallels the interstate, was closed as well. As a result, the California Zephyr was annuled Sunday, with passengers offered alternate means of travel. On Monday, both UP and the interstate were open, but at least two exits around Glenwood Springs are closed, and travel through the smoke-filled area is widely discouraged. The Coal Seam fire is one of many wildfires that have erupted in Colorado this month, and so far it's the most dangerous, due to the rugged terrain, dry vegetation, and the high winds that have grounded slurry bombers.
I hope they can save it, Glenwood Springs is one of our favorite camping areas for vacations. What a shame!
Lets see if history repeats itself. If you'll recall, Storm King Mtn. was where those smoke jumpers and Hotshot crew got killed about a decade ago. Hopefully the lessons learned will stick arouynd a little better than they did after the Mann Gulch fire.
OK, scratch the annullment- the CZ was detoured over UP's Overland main thru Wyoming both ways that day, going north to Cheyenne, then west to Ogden. My bad..... As far as lessons learned, let me paint the picture for you- several years of subnormal precipitation, smaller snowpack levels, and very little rain so far (here in GJ we've had 1.67 inches precip since Jan. 1, whereas we should have a little over four). Now, toss in ultra-low humidity and high winds (thanks to a low pressure center north of here), and an underground coal seam that's been burning for years, and you have a recipe for disaster. High winds whipping through the narrow canyon really move, and the flames jumped I-70, the tracks, and the Colorado River. Add the increased population in Colorado and the West since 1994, and you've got problems. In addition, we have several fires burning in Colorado as I type this, with over 77,000 acres burned. Dry lightning strikes, one idiot starting a campfire, a burning coal seam- it don't take much. We now have a total fire and fireworks ban statewide. This doesn't have much to do with railroads (other than the closed UP main, which only suffered some singed ties, BTW), but it really strikes close to us who live here. With the grace of God and some common sense, the deaths on Storm king mountain in 1994 won't be replayed (but lots of folks are having bad flashbacks). OK, off the soapbox.............back to trains.
