The biggest population center in southern Colorado is Pueblo and, like the rest of the state, Pueblo is burning. Of course, not literally, but there is a nearby fire burning just south of the city.
Pueblo temperatures already have topped the century mark a few different times. Thankfully, not at a consistent heat level, but still, the city’stemperatures are hanging near triple digits, where they will probably remain for weeks to come. The city, though, is managing and taking care of its own.
“We issued two heat emergency temporary housing declarations,” said Pueblo’s Director of Public Affairs, Haley Sue Robinson. Concurrently, the city’s fire department announced it is standing by to address any heat related incidents.
“We’re seeing higher temperatures earlier,” said Pueblo Fire’s public information officer, Tim Trujillo. “We’re trying to get the message out to stay hydrated and stay out of the sun” as best as possible. Trujillo also said city hall has also asked for private sector help, including from local churches. So far, the city has not experienced a spike in emergency heat-related calls.
The city’s parks and recreation department is encouraging people use its six public pools. Pueblo’s City Park pool, the city says, is the most popular, attracting more than 23,000 people each summer. There is also nearby Lake Pueblo in the northwestern section of the county where thousands of people go each summer for their escape from the heat and water recreation.
The weather, while scorching, has not come close to Pueblo’s all-time record high—109 degrees on July 13, 2003. Still, the fire department is on high alert for weather-related calls, including those of children left unattended in cars.
It may seem difficult to even think about these kinds of incidents, but since 1990 there have been nearly 1,100 deaths nationwide of children left unattended in hot vehicles, according to the nonprofit advocacy group, “Kids and Car Safety.” Just last week a six-year-old Florida girl died in such an incident. In the years 2018 and 2019, there were 54 and 53 deaths respectively recorded in these type of calls across the U.S.
Summertime temperatures inside a car whose windows are rolled up can quickly reach temperatures of 108 degrees in as little as 30-45 minutes. Organ failure can happen in as little as 30 minutes in young infants.
“You have heat shining in the windows and temperatures rise quickly,” Trujillo said. “But we have the tools,” he said, to get in and retrieve the child or pet. Colorado has a law that protects people who break a car window to rescue a child or animal. But Trujillo suggests first calling police or fire.
Trujillo said the department has not received any calls of children left alone in cars, but because it is a call that can happen anywhere, the Pueblo Fire Department is prepared.
With the heatwave enveloping southern Colorado, fire crews battling the Oak Ridge Fire are also at risk of not only injury from the fire but heat from the equipment they must wear.
Trujillo said in summer fires, including ones like Oak Ridge, firefighters are monitored for safety. “We want them to be in shape,” he said. The heat, the heat from the fire and the individual energy expended can quickly overcome an individual. “We want to make sure they’re hydrated…we also have inflatable tents” to provide a spot for them to cool down. In the week that the fire has burned and consumed more 1,100 acres, there have been no reports of injuries to fire crews.
Just south of Pueblo, the U.S. Forest Service is battling the first big fire of the season, the Oak Ridge Fire. The fire which is being fought by more than 200 firefighters is located in the San Isabel National Forest and is near the town of Beulah.
Fire officials say that there are approximately 20 homes near Middle Creek Canyon Road that have been evacuated and pre-evacuation orders may also be declared for Vine Mesa, Cascade and Pine Avenues along with Beulah Highlands Road.
