The Board of County Commissioners and County leadership extend our deepest gratitude to the dozens of heroic responders from the numerous different agencies who mobilized to fight the Mountain View Fire. It was your swift, aggressive, and well-coordinated response that prevented this fire from becoming a widespread catastrophe for Chaffee County. Many organizations and individuals offered critical support throughout the incident; we are so appreciative of the exceptional mutual aid provided on scene and for the generous local businesses who donated food and supplies. We are also thankful for the responsible and cooperative actions of the dozens of residents who had to be evacuated at a moment’s notice as the fire grew.
All of us at the County grieve with the two families whose homes were lost and all those otherwise negatively affected by the Mountain View Fire. We also celebrate the fact that so many properties were saved and that there were no known injuries and no loss of life. Given what was at stake, the ultimate outcome was truly incredible and a real testament to the skill and expertise of all of the fire fighting and law enforcement leaders involved.
Chaffee County Community Foundation (CCCF) is the designated organization to receive donations in support of those impacted. To make a contribution and directly support local response and recovery efforts, visit the CCCF’s Emergency Response Fund page at www.chaffeecommunity.org/erf. If you have been impacted and need assistance – financial, physical, or emotional – please contact the Chaffee County Department of Human Services (DHS) at 719-530-2500 or . DHS is coordinating available services and support for affected individuals.
Chaffee County Sheriff investigators are working closely with the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control to finalize assessment of the source and cause of the fire. Once these reports are completed, we will relay what we can with the community to use as a learning experience. We are also evaluating the Mountain View Fire incident response overall to use this as a chance to continually improve our incident planning and management and ensure we are always ready to provide the actions needed to keep our communities safe in the face of complex emergencies.
The Mountain View Fire is a stark reminder of the challenges and realities of living deeply within the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI). While the WUI is a beautiful landscape we all cherish, it also holds a higher fire risk and more complicated evacuation and incident response considerations that we must take seriously. As the County continues to invest in and expand wildfire risk mitigation programs, we invite you to be informed and remain involved – from ensuring your own personal preparedness to forest treatments on your property and hardening your home to help reduce your fire danger, and to always heeding the fire restrictions when they are in place. All efforts are essential. You can start with reviewing the resources available on the www.ChaffeeCounty.org website, which we will be supplementing over coming days and weeks. Fire prevention and readiness is a responsibility we each share – the independent actions that residents, property owners, and visitors each take do make a major difference for the whole county in helping protect our beloved community and special landscapes and the critters who live within them.
Thank you again to everyone who came together to help fight the Mountain View Fire and worked so hard to keep our Chaffee County community safe. The County Commissioners commend you all!
