The Fire Rages On (Colorados CalWood Fire) - Lily Hoffman

 The Fire Rages On (Colorados Wildfires)

By Lily Hoffman

        2020 has really made its mark. It cemented itself as one of the worst years in living memories. First a global pandemic, then racial tensions reach a high in June, then the stress of a new election. Twenty-twenty is not done yet. This year has had a record breaking fire season in the western part of the US. Over the 18th and the 19th, many fires erupted in Colorado. The Colorado fires have come to be called the Calwood fire, Lefthand Canyon fire, with many more springing up every day. The fires have been specially devastating the northern part of Colorado. People are being stripped of their livelihood as the fire devours their homes and places of work. Some fires have taken at least 3,000 acres in less than a day. The cause of all the fires isn't know yet but some fires, such as the Fire Cannon Fire has been stated as a human caused fire. Sadly, as a result of the sheer amount of fires in Colorado, national parks and forests are being forced to close down. In addition to other evacuated town residents, as many as 23 hikers have had to be rescued from just one forest. 

        The victims of the fires are largely unheard. Even though the fires are making big news, a lot of other events ,such as the election, are captivating the media's whole attention. The victims and how their lives are affected is not seriously discussed as much as it should be. For example, the Lefthand fire has forced residents of Ward, Colorado to fee their homes to avoid the flames. This order was also issued on the official Boulder Twitter account. The town of Ward is only 15 miles from the site where the Calwood fire started.

        A big part of the series of wildfires in Colorado is the CalWood fires. The Calwood fire is the biggest recorded fire in terms of acreage in Boulder, Colorado history. On Sunday the 18th, 8,788 acres were being burned down with only 15% of the fire consumed (Silverman 1). The wildfire started in Jamestown and and is starting to spread through Colorado. With all this devastation, there is still hope. Over 250 firefighters have been dispatched to contain the Calwood fire. In addition over 80 officers are helping to get people out of dangerous areas and are investigating the fires. Not only are these essential workers going out and sacrificing their safety in the fires but they are also sacrificing their safety in terms of catching Covid-19. 

        

        All these fires should be a lesson in responsibility to the general population. If 2020 has taught us anything, its that your actions have consequences and that you need to take responsibility for what you do. As more fires are being caused by human mistakes, we are forced to take a long hard look at ourselves in a mirror and really start thinking about how we cause devastation through our actions. First it was a horrible wildfire in California caused by a baby shower and now it's people causing devastating fires in Colorado. The most important question is "How many people have to have their lives destroyed for us to learn?". 

       Sources Cited

Silverman, Hollie, et al. “Evacuations Ordered in Colorado and Utah as Crews Battle New Blazes.” CNN, Cable News Network, 19 Oct. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/10/18/us/colorado-utah-fires-evacuation/index.html. 

Sutton, Joe, and Hollie Silverman. “Wildfires Force Closure of National Forests in Five Colorado Counties.” CNN, Cable News Network, 20 Oct. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/10/20/us/us-western-wildfires-tuesday/index.html. 

Oxner, Reese. “Fight Against Colorado's Two Largest-Ever Fires Continues, Aided By Snow.” NPR, NPR, 26 Oct. 2020, www.npr.org/2020/10/26/928014492/fight-against-colorados-two-largest-ever-fires-continues-aided-by-snow. 

Kallingal, Mallika. “Cars Clog Highways as Families Flee East Troublesome Fire in Colorado.” CNN, Cable News Network, 24 Oct. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/10/23/us/colorado-wildfire-evacuations-friday/index.html.