Fire Chief Speaks at Annual Meeting
South Metro Fire District Chief Robert Rinne presented a post-incident report about the Cherokee Ranch fire during the Annual Meeting of the Master Association on November 20.
Among his comments were that the Fire District felt it had had good control of the fire by about 6:00 pm. the evening of October 29, and it was apparent that no residences would be lost. However, equipment was still moving about the area until about 2 a.m. Among the resources that were mobilized were 75,000 gallon tankers to fight the fire if the need arose. Also on standby were three Black Hawk helicopters
A concern of residents was that many did not receive a reverse-911 call. The Master Association and the chief will look into this gap in service. Data is still being collected, so please e-mail safety@cpnhoa.org, to report whether or not you received a call, where you live, and how many phone lines you have. Note that the emergency service cannot override blocked lines.
Chief Rinne explained that the evacuations were mandated in part to make it easier to move the equipment about the area. Then, once the evacuation had been publicized, law enforcement kept people out to prevent someone who doesn’t belong here from taking advantage of the empty neighborhod.
Metro District Manger Judy Dahl reported that the water system did not record any significant draw on the wells, to which public information officer Andy Lyons reported that brush fires do not require a constant flow of water, unlike house fires.
A slide show of the fire and those fighting it concluded his remarks, to the grateful applause of the audience. For more, go online at southmetro.org.
