Important reminders for homeowners before the next wildfire

The 117 Fire was the latest of several wildfires we’ve already seen this season in Colorado, but it was different from the others because of how quickly it spread.

The flames scorched 43,000 acres over eight hours — which is about 6,000 – 8,000 acres per hour. Strong winds are blamed for the rapid growth.

It was a learning experience for firefighters who want to share what they learned to prepare others for the next fire.

Hanover Fire Chief Carl Tatum said there wasn’t much they would have changed about their attack because they did all they could, but the 117 Fire did teach them one big lesson.

“The fire was moving between 35-40 mph, and we probably should have a done a larger scale evacuation rather than go with our protocol of doing blocks at a time,” he said.

The fire spread so quickly that by the time some people would have been getting the evacuation notice, the flames had knocked down power lines nearby and reduced communication. And some people were already trapped in their homes.

That’s why they’re urging people to use the 117 Fire as a reminder to prepare now.

“Sign on with the reverse 911 calls on your cell phone and home phone and do your fire mitigation to your home,” Tatum said. “There’s no time to do fire mitigation if a fire is already happening because you’ll have life-safety issues.”

And if you find yourself in the path of flames the next fire, there are a few things you should do to help firefighters:

“Have clear markings on your home and address so we can easily find it,” Tatum explained. “If you do evacuate, don’t lock your gates. If you lock your gates and a fire is within them, we will have to break through them to get in, so just don’t lock them.”

These lessons learned could save you and the firefighters trying to save you next time.