The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Breakdown in communication led to noncompliant bonfire
by Mark Reaman
The Crested Butte Marshal’s Office and Crested Butte Town Council were displeased with the way the Vinotok fire was handled this year—so much so that the fire could be in serious peril of continuing in upcoming years at the Visitor Center parking lot at the Four-way Stop.
In a debriefing report to the Town Council, Crested Butte chief marshal Mike Reily reviewed the events leading up to the September 24 fire and stated that the actual fire did not comply with agreed-upon parameters, even after several meetings and fire tests.
The Saturday night bonfire that was the climax of the Vinotok celebration was bigger than anticipated; had more explosive devices than agreed to, including some that did not detonate properly; contained prohibited light fuels such as sticks, leaves and grasses; was not designed as discussed to make sure the towers collapsed into the inside of the fire ring; and the Grump exceeded the approved dimension for the fire design and had non-approved fuel loads.
Had it not snowed three inches in the previous 24 hours, Reily said, the marshals might have had to call off the fire.
“The safety of the community and neighborhood are paramount. The past concerns were not addressed with the 2016 Vinotok bonfire because it was not constructed as proposed and tested. Because of the organizers’ willful disregard for any agreements reached during the numerous planning meetings, I do not feel comfortable approving such a bonfire to proceed in the Chamber lot in the future,” Reily wrote.
While inspecting the building of the bonfire, Reily said it was very obvious the “bonfire construction was not as planned, designed or discussed.”
“While the construction of the bonfire was clearly outside of the designed/discussed dimensions, orientation and fuel types, the organizers seemed unwilling to change the built dimension,” the report continued. “Were it not for very conducive weather conditions, the bonfire might have had to be dismantled until it met specifications. In light of my previous conversations with the event organizers and bonfire construction/designers about the event’s future depending on a very moderate or even ‘lame’ bonfire, I allowed them to proceed at the event’s own potential peril.”
The fire was ignited about 9 p.m. and burned for just more than 90 minutes. According to Reily, the size and intensity of the bonfire was not as concentrated as previous vertically oriented fires but the high-fuel load at the base caused a different kind of intensity that resulted in small wind- and explosion-borne sparks. Smoldering remnants from the explosive powder were found as far as 100 feet from the bonfire.
During the November 7 council meeting Reily said the council might want to have a full and frank discussion with the Vinotok organizers before next fall’s event. “There are some things you guys may want to deal with before the event next year,” he said.
“Reading the report, it was concerning, frankly,” said mayor Glenn Michel.
“I feel like the council was insulted by the Vinotok committee,” said councilman Jim Schmidt. “It was a loss of trust with them. I am very, very, very disappointed with the committee and the flagrant disregard of what the council asked them to do.”
“We might have to explore the alternative locations for the fire, like the Gravel Pit,” added councilwoman Erika Vohman.
“I would rather deal with this sooner than later, while it is all fresh in everyone’s mind,” said Michel.
Vinotok’s main fire liaison, Bob Wojtalik, said Tuesday that while he disagreed with some of Reily’s points at the debriefing meeting, he admitted that there were some valid concerns. He said some internal communication breakdowns led to some of the discrepancies between what he and the town had agreed upon and what was ultimately constructed.
“After Mike’s inspection we removed some stuff from the fire construction,” Wojtalik said. “The towers were a little bigger than they were supposed to be. The cremora flash bombs didn’t go like we planned. They were there to help make a small fire more interesting. I’ve received feedback from people who both liked it and didn’t. As for the size of the fire, it was substantially smaller than it had been the last several years. The fire itself probably had 60 to 70 percent less fuel than what I had anticipated it would be.
“I agree partially with Mike that some things didn’t go off as agreed,” Wojtalik continued. “I’ll take responsibility for the communications breakdown. I should have communicated better with some of the guys who were building the fire. So I get what he’s saying and we have a year to tighten up our lines of communication and make sure everyone involved in the building of the fire is totally aware of what is supposed to be built. The Vinotok committee can do things differently to make sure we are all on the same page and complying with what’s been approved.”
The town staff and Vinotok organizers will try to find a time before the end of the year to have a discussion with the council about how to better deal with the fire.
