08/17/2020
A perspective to share on the Cameron Peak Fire.
As we communicate with the incident management team, tremendous focus is being placed on protecting homes and communities in the path of the Cameron Peak Fire. I’ve personally observed crews doing prep work around homes that have been evacuated. We’ve also been communicating with local fire departments on the need of residents well ahead of this fire to be prepared for the potential of the need for further evacuations.
We apologize for the inconvenience of evacuations and we understand the concerns that being displaced brings to residents. We certainly hope that large scale evacuations won’t be necessary, but we are planning to make sure we are as prepared as possible if they come.
Having viewed this fire since day one, I want to share some encouraging news. While it does continue to grow significantly in size, most of what I’ve seen has been a relatively healthy burn. While there are sections that are completely burned, a lot of the areas burned along the ground with scorching of the surrounding trees and areas of torched trees. That type of burning should make our forests healthier in the long run.
We have a long way to go, but with the team and fire personnel getting into place, we are seeing some promising signs.
A huge thanks to all the fire personnel poring in from across the country to help protect our forest and our communities!