All evacuation orders lifted for NCAR Fire in Boulder County
BOULDER, Colo. (KRDO) -- Boulder County immediately evacuated 19,000 people, and 8,000 homes when the NCAR fire ignited Saturday. More than 24 hours later, residents are being told it's safe to head back home.
After 5 p.m. Sunday, the City of Boulder lifted all evacuation orders, and evacuees were told they may return home, according to the Facebook post on the Boulder County Office of Emergency Management page.
According to the most recent NCAR Fire information from a spokesperson for Boulder Fire-Rescue, the fire is currently around 35% contained with 189 acres burned. Fortunately, there are no injuries to report or structure damage as a result.
150 firefighters from 30 different agencies are currently fighting the fire.
In a statement, the Boulder Office of Emergency Management says they've received "several complaints that individuals well outside of the evacuation zone, including in neighboring communities" received evacuation notices relating to the NCAR Fire.
Implemented earlier this month, Boulder OEM says they Wireless Emergency Alerts, or WEA, are used to notify people in the area to evacuate.
"(WEA) uses cell phone technology, including cellular towers, to push notifications out, similar to Amber Alerts and National Weather Service notices, to all cell phones that are configured to accept them... The downside to WEA is that because it uses cellular towers, its messaging is much less precise. Anyone whose phone pings the relevant towers will get the alert," Boulder OEM said in a statement regarding the complaints.
“For us, we are comfortable with getting more folks if we have to, so we get everybody. We don’t want to not get everybody,” said Marya Washburn, the spokesperson for the Boulder Fire-Rescue.
Where Boulder County would rather be safe than sorry when it comes to its evacuation notices, El Paso County is trying to be more precise.
Jim Reid, the Director of the El Paso County Office of Emergency Management, spoke at a Colorado Springs City Council Work Session on Feb 22, discussing new tech like Zonehaven. The evacuation management program is meant to break down municipalities into smaller more optimal evacuation zones.
“Firefighters realize 'Hey, this thing is going to move a little further south than we want," Reid said. "Alright, I’ll kick off the next two adjoining zones. In other words, I am not kicking off fifty thousand people all at once. It will decrease the amount of evacuees at any one point. They have trigger points where if a fire extends to a certain point -- okay now we need to get these out. It will be a lot more coordinated, and hopefully faster."
City Council President Tom Strand told 13 Investigates the issue the contract between the city and Zonehaven will be discussed and potentially voted upon starting in April. Strand says Zonehaven will initially cost the city $70 to $80 thousand, while annual upkeep costs will span from $30 to $40 thousand.
