Petition to dismiss the Black Forest Fire Chief

A petition is circulating at several businesses in Black Forest calling for the immediate dismissal of Fire Chief Bob Harvey.

Michelle Andree is the first name on one of the petitions.

“I’ve been asking questions since the first day after the fire when I was rescuing animals. Why was there so much time lag? Why was there so many homes that burned? Why do we not get answers?” Andree said.

The petition comes just days after El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa told KRDO Newschannel 13 that Chief Harvey denied accepting more help in the first two hours of the Black Forest fire.

“He said “no, we got this.” And I said, well, what do you have? I mean this thing looks pretty big,” Maketa said.

Dozens have already signed the petition. For many residents, Maketa’s words were confirmation to stories and rumors they had heard since June.

“He had dropped the ball and because of his arrogance, he allowed this to happen,” said Alan Havens who lost everything in the fire and also signed the petition.

Darrell Fortner lost his home, business and pets to the fire.

When he heard what Maketa had to say, he wasn’t happy with Chief Harvey.

“I could have put a black eye on him and pull the badge off of his chest,” Fortner said.

There was no comment from Chief Harvey on this petition.

You can see what the petition says on our Facebook page.