The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Specific parameters set for a Mt. Crested Butte launch
If the weather doesn’t change soon and everything falls into place as expected, the Fourth of July fireworks will be launched from Warming House Hill at the base of the ski area in Mt. Crested Butte. If things turn dry and windy, the fireworks could be launched back in Crested Butte.
The Crested Butte Fire Protection District (CBFPD) will make a final decision on the launch site by Monday, June 29.
The CBFPD discussed the fireworks at a meeting Tuesday, June 9, and discussed concerns about the safety of launching fireworks extremely close to Forest Service property. But the board ultimately agreed that if certain parameters were met, holding the fireworks on Warming House Hill was doable.
The Gunnison Ranger District of the U.S. Forest Service had sent a letter expressing concern over the proposed launch location. Forest Service officials made it clear that if a forest fire resulted from the event, CBMR and the Crested Butte-Mt. Crested Butte Chamber of Commerce, the event agent, would be primarily responsible for the cost of fighting the fire.
Fire Protection board chairman Reed Meredith emphasized that the board “wasn’t taking the decision lightly” but felt Forest Service concerns could be allayed if certain guidelines were met.
Those included getting an okay from the Forest Service concerning adequate moisture content in the forest, making sure enough fire department personnel volunteered to help out with the event, making sure there was no “red flag warning or fire ban” in the county at the time, ensuring that Crested Butte Mountain Resort had its snowmaking system charged to provide plenty of water to the vicinity, and guaranteeing that the Crested Butte-Mt. Crested Butte Chamber of Commerce had insurance to cover the firework event.
“I still have a bit of trepidation launching next to the National Forest and it will take a huge effort from all the parties involved, but let’s look at the situation and make a ‘Go-No Go’ decision by the Monday before the Fourth,” said Meredith. “It is a difficult balancing act. I hear and understand all the comments for doing it in Mt. Crested Butte. At the same time, we are charged with the what-ifs and we want to avoid a serious event.”
Board member Hank Smith felt comfortable with the new launch area. “If all the mechanisms are in place I am feeling better about the proposed site. Getting enough personnel could be an issue. The worst case scenario is we can set up in Crested Butte at the traditional site,” he said.
The third board member present at the meeting was Peter O’Rourke. “Right now, I don’t have a problem with it,” he said, “as long as we have the weather to go with it.”
Fire chief Rick Ems preferred to error on the side of caution. “I don’t want to disrupt the relationship with the Gunnison Basin Wildfire Council,” he said. That council is comprised of various agencies in the county that meet regularly about summer wildfire issues. The Forest Service is one of those agencies. “We’ll be heroes if nothing happens, but something altogether different if things go wrong. I’m a little reluctant. Town has always been a safer site because it is surrounded by wetlands, but even there we have spot fires.”
It was mentioned that given the location, the normal half dozen volunteer fire fighters at the scene would have to be increased significantly. “Right now I have one committed volunteer to help me and I’ve had a sign-up sheet since the end of May. It is a holiday and firefighters like to enjoy the holiday and spend it with their family. We need adequate amount of people from the fire department to help,” said Ems.
“Personnel will be an issue,” agreed Smith. “But the bottom line is that this is fireworks and you can never get to 100 percent certainty.”
CBMR, the Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary have all agreed to help supply volunteer help.
District manager Mike Miller said the bottom line was always going to be safety. “This isn’t something we haven’t done,” he said. “If it’s not safe, it won’t happen. We’ll do everything we can to make it safe and right now it certainly seems like it will be a moist year. As the scenario is laid out, I’m comfortable with it.”
Meredith said the department had learned a lot through this year’s process. “In the future, the district will have to even discuss whether it wants or needs to be putting on these pyrotechnic shows,” he said. “There are private companies that do it. We are an all-volunteer organization.”
Chamber executive director Richard Bond assured the Fire Protection board that it would have insurance to cover the event. He also said it was important to help Mt. Crested Butte share in the benefits of a big Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Mt. Crested Butte Town Center Association manager Allison Yeary said a free concert would be held before the fireworks. “It seems like CBMR and the chamber have a lot of people committed and ready to volunteer to make the whole event work,” she said.
If all goes well, the Mt. Crested Butte festivities will begin at 7 p.m. with the concert.
