Press release – Palmer Fire

At around 6:56 p.m., the Glenwood Springs Fire Department received a report of a brush fire on the hillside east of the 2500 block of Palmer Avenue.

Upon arrival, fire crews found a quarter acre active fire located near the base of a steep sloped canyon with challenging terrain. Fire was spreading quickly uphill into thicker vegetation. At once, firefighters promptly initiated fire attack, ordered additional resources, and identified structures at risk. Thanks to the Garfield County Sheriff Officers and the Glenwood Springs Police Department three of the closest Altitude Apartment buildings were safely evacuated. Evacuees were able to return to their homes later in the night.

Carbondale & Rural Fire Protection District, Roaring Fork Fire Rescue, and the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit responded with resources including a type 1 Black Hawk helicopter. The helicopter dropped water on the fire effectively slowing the growth of the fire enabling firefighters to complete constructing line around the fire using anchor, flank, and pinch strategy. By 10:00 pm last night, firefighters successfully constructed direct hand line around the entire fire perimeter. Firefighters monitored the fire throughout the night and resumed mop up operations at 7:30 am this morning. By 8:30 am this morning, Incident Commander Hood called the fire 100% contained with an approximate size of one and a half acres. Firefighters will continue to monitor the burn area to watch for any signs of the fire rekindling.

In response to the incident, there were a total of three type-one engines, two type-six engines, five command vehicles, one investigation vehicle, a type 1 Black Hawk helicopter, along with 23 personnel from Carbondale and Rural Fire Protection, Roaring Fork Fire Authority, and the Upper Colorado River Fire Management Unit. Additionally, the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office, Glenwood Springs Police Department responded to this incident. The Glenwood Springs Fire Department is immensely grateful for the response from these partner agencies.

Incident Commander Hood stated, “The quick deployment of air resources and immediate response and hard work from our mutual aid partners kept the fire from getting out of control.”
The Glenwood Springs Fire Marshal has declared the cause of the fire undetermined human caused in nature. Fortunately, no injuries have been reported at this time. No further information will be provided.