colorado wildfire
 

dont know that this image is really a 'quality' image, but here goes.

http://images.ibsys.com/2002/0610/1504080.jpg

the link to the story is here.

this wildfire is burning nearly 100000 acres west of denver, supposedly caused by an illegal campfire. i live about 65 miles from denver, and closer to 80 miles from the fire. when i woke up this morning there was a fine layer of ash on my car.

colorado has always been real touristy, and i commend the powers that be for being able to handle so many people gracefully. and while i cannot say with authority that the fire was caused by a tourist, its hard to like the fact that so many people come here and fail to respect what they came to see. when i go hiking i take a trash bag with me, and never fail to fill it with stuff people tossed to the side of the trail. when i drive in the mountains, i am constantly swerving to avoid people who suddenly stop in the middle of the road to photograph deer. as if this is the only place in the world you can see deer. i understand people may come from areas where they may not be accustomed to mountain driving. but stopping at the end of a curve where a great whopping mountain prevents those going into the curve from seeing the end is not good application of common sense. just as lighting an uncontained campfire in the middle of an old-growth forest which hasnt seen rain is two weeks is not good application of common sense. reminds me of those cartoons where yosemite sam lights a match in a room filled with gunpowder.

sorry about the rant. i want people to be able to see the beauty nature has provided here in colorado, but i dont want to clean up after them, rear end them or watch them set fire to our national parks.

feh, as a sidenote, my house is starting construction this week. i cant tell you how exciting that is.

~james

Perhaps in light of recent events you may want to postpone that construction?

you mean the wildfire? nah. not enough kindling between the homesite and potential tinderboxes.

but now that i think about it, it is kind of funny that i chose this thread to mention that.

and why, exactly, was the word 'leader' changed to ****** on the text under my name?

~james

I just tried it too...that is weird. It could be that UT is a power-hungry bastard. ;)

Seriously UT, why won't it allow you to insert the word "leader?"

By default there are a number of words that aren't allowed in a user title, like "moderator" and "vbulletin", in order to try to not let people fool others into thinking they are in charge.

But that doesn't make sense here and so I've disabled all the censorship words except "moderator".

I've fixed yer user title Perth.

A-HA! I have beaten the system! 1 h4x0r j00! F3aR MEEEEEE!!!!! I AM M0D3R4T0R!

Er... wait... that's 'cause... nevermind. :)

thanks undertoad. :)

~james

Sunset breaks through smoke of the Hayman wildfire Friday, June 14, 2002, near Deckers, Colo. The Hayman wildfire which started Saturday has burned over 102,000 acres and remains out of control. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

nic:

that image is way cooler. i was looking for an image that showed the strange beauty of a wildfire, but i wanted one from a current fire. thanks for posting that one.

~james

Jumping to conclusions ...
 

Forest worker arrested over Colorado fire

17.06.2002

DENVER - The US Forest Service said today that one of its own officers had been charged with touching off a huge wildfire southwest of Denver, as firefighters continued to battle several stubborn blazes in Colorado.

Terry Barton, 38, was arrested on Sunday without incident, first assistant US Attorney for Colorado Bill Leone said.

The officer, who told authorities she was burning a letter from her estranged husband when the fire got out of control, was patrolling the area where the fire started on June 8.

According to Leone, Barton admitted starting the Hayman fire in an abandoned campground in the Pike National Forest after investigators confronted her with inconsistent statements she made earlier about discovering the fire.

A veteran of more than 18 years with the service, Barton had been charged with three criminal counts: setting fire to timber in a national forest, damaging federal property in excess of $1,000 and making false statements to investigators.

If convicted on all charges, Barton faces up to 15 years in prison and NZ$1,032,000 in fines.

Leone was joined at a news conference announcing the arrest by Colorado Govenor Bill Owens and other US Forest officials.

"We feel horrible about this," Rick Cables of the Forest Service told reporters. "It's a tragic situation."

Colorado, like other Rocky Mountain states, is in the grip of a severe drought, making timber bone dry and vulnerable to either lightning strikes or flying embers from man-made fires left unattended.

The Hayman fire, the largest in state history, started 10 days ago and has burned 25 homes and consumed about 103,000 acres about 88km southwest of Denver.

Colorado Owens said Barton's "act should not detract from the fine work of the US Forest Service".

Firefighters made headway in containing the blaze on Sunday, and had it about 47 per cent contained by late Sunday afternoon, said fire information officer Larrry Helmerick.

- REUTERS

http://a799.ms.akamai.net/3/799/388/...ws/1527241.jpg

Re: Jumping to conclusions ...
 

That's $500,000 US. :)

wow. one of the people you expect to know better. i guess id better go apply for a job with the forest service since theyre still hiring just anyone.

i know shes not the only one to have ever burnt a letter from a lover, and im sure she was upset at the time. but wheres the common sense? its not like it was the first fire of the year. its not like all the newspapers and radio and tv and signs at the park entrances werent warning of fire danger. i guess thats what gets me the most. the people you would most expect to use common sense, dont.

rant rant rant, blah blah blah. throw the book at her, i say.

~james

liar liar pants on fire
 

"The officer, who told authorities she was burning a letter from her estranged husband when the fire got out of control, was patrolling the area where the fire started on June 8." This is probably just one in a series of lies. I find it hard to believe that a Forest Service Officer couldn't handle the controlled burn of a letter.

griff,

you might be right...

seems investigators think she did it on purpose. i cant really imagine why someone would do that, but then i dont understand why people pull a lot of shit. the article doesnt go into too much detail, but it does talk about why investigators didnt buy her story in the first place.

~james