Video captures intense moments inside burn zone

One of the first looks into the Black Forest Fire burn zone came from the Colorado Springs Fire Department. Steve Schoepper, audio/video specialist with CSFD, filmed firefighters battling the fire and saving a house.

In the video, firefighters are working to protect a home that is surrounded by fire. Schoepper sat down with KRDO NewsChannel 13 to talk about the importance of his video.

“As I was taping it, I knew I was capturing something very, very special,” Schoepper said. “I’ve seen this drill a lot of times. I just haven’t seen it with fire.”

Schoepper said fire departments from around the country and around the world have asked for his videos for training purposes. Schoepper also filmed intense moments of the Waldo Canyon Fire.

“When you have video, the video camera really does not lie,” Schoepper said. “You can analyze things you can do better.”

Schoepper also noted that the video shows how important mitigation is to saving structures. He said it can mean the difference between coming home to a home or coming home to ashes.

“Firefighters are going to jump on that opportunity to save that house that’s mitigated as opposed to the one that has fuel right up against the house,” Schoepper said.

Schoepper hopes his video can help teach people the importance of wildfire preparedness.