Inferno!

Tom Gormley

Description

INFERNO! – The story of the Marshall Fire, the heroes who fight it, the area history, the recovery, and the miracles that happen along the way
The December 30, 2021, Marshall Fire outside of Boulder will be remembered as the most destructive inferno in Colorado history and one of the top fifteen worst fires in the western U.S. In a little over four hours, the fire, fueled by high velocity Chinook winds, burns 6,026 acres, consumes 1,084 structures, and damages many additional. Over 37,500 residents evacuate. Most flee without receiving any warning, leaving with little more than the shirts on their backs, escaping a fire burning minutes behind. Miraculously, only two persons are killed and eight injured during the fire. Though everyone’s story is unique, common experiences abound. Scenes during the fire are surreal with one house engulfed in flames while its neighbor sits untouched with Christmas lights twinkling. The fury of the wind decides what burns and what stands untouched.
“INFERNO!” is the true story of the Marshall fire and the many miracles that occur during and after. Interviews, local history and pictures convey the turmoil, tragedy and drama of this nightmare.

Sujets

• Histoire
• Jefe
• Louisville, Kentucky
• Superior
• Fire
• History
• Inferno
• Boulder
• Louisville
• Marshall
• Colorado

Informations

• Publié par: Trafford Publishing
• Date de parution: 10 octobre 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781698712987
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 9 Mo

Extrait

© Copyright 2022 Tom Gormley .
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.
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Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only. Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
ISBN: 978-1-6987-1297-0 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6987-1314-4 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-6987-1298-7 (e)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2022917760
Trafford rev. 12/28/2022

Firefighters’ Prayer 1
When I am called to duty,
God wherever flames may rage,
give me strength to save a life,
whatever be its age.
Help me to embrace a little child before it’s too late,
or save an older person from the horror of that fate.
Enable me to be alert to hear the weakest s hout,
and quickly and efficiently to put the fire out.
I want to fill my calling and to give the best i n me,
to guard my neighbor and protect his prop erty.
And if according to your will I have to lose my life,
bless with your protecting hand my loving family from st rife.

Overview Map of the Marshall Fire


Contents
Preface
Message from Chief John Willson, Louisville Fire Protection District
Message from Commander Randy Wilber, Boulder County Sheriff’s Office
Introduction
Marshall, December 30, 2021, 8:00 a.m., Wind NW 4 mph, Gusting to 19 mph, 30°F
Louisville, December 30, 2021, 8:45 a.m., Wind E 10 mph, Gusting to 18 mph, 41°F
Superior, December 30, 2021, 10:00 a.m., Wind WSW 30 mph, Gusting to 65 mph, 41°F
Marshall, December 30, 2021, 11:00 a.m., Wind WSW 98 mph, Gusting to 98 mph 40°F
Superior, December 30, 2021, 11:46 a.m., Wind SSE 12 mph, Gusting to 39 mph 44°F
Louisville, December 30, 2021, 12:46 p.m., Wind SSE 25 mph, Gusting to 55 mph 44°F
Marshall, December 30, 2021, 1:56 p.m., Wind W 68 mph, Gusting to 84 mph 40°F
Louisville, December 30, 2021, 2:58 p.m., Wind W 32 mph, Gusting to 68 mph 48°F
Louisville, December 30, 2021, 3:46 p.m., Wind E 12 mph, Gusting to 17 mph 46°F
Louisville, December 30, 2021, 4:59 p.m., Wind NNE 9 mph, Gusting to 19 mph 43°F
Louisville Manorwood, December 30, 2021, 5:53 p.m., Wind NW 5 mph, Gusting 6 mph 43°F
NREL, December 30, 2021, 7:00 p.m., Wind WSW 35 mph, Gusting to 47 mph 41°F
Louisville Middle School, December 30, 2021, 8:08 p.m., Wind E 1 mph, Gusting to 12 mph 42°F
Louisville Manorwood Lane, December 31, 2021, 8:01 a.m., Wind Calm 29°F
Rocky Mountain Metro Airport, January 1, 2022, 8:45 a.m., Wind Calm 5°F
Superior, January 2, 2022, 8:45 a.m., Wind Calm 5°F
Louisville and Superior Cleanup, Early January
Assistance and Aid
Rebuilding and Rebirth
Cause and Effects
Conclusion and Final Thoughts
About the Author
Appendix A—Partial List of the Marshall Fire Miracles
Appendix B—Statistics and Fire Responders
Partial Bibliography

Preface
The December 30, 2021, Marshall fire outside of Boulder will be remembered as the most destructive inferno in Colorado history and one of the top fifteen worst fires in the Western United States. In a little over four hours, the fire, fueled by high velocity Chinook winds, burned 6,026 acres, consumed 1,084 structures, and damaged many more. The fire caught everyone living nearby by surprise. No one thought a fire could cause so much destruction in so short a time. Few residents thought Superior and Louisville at risk to a wildfire. During a holiday shutdown, with many firefighters and police on vacation, when fires rarely occur, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and with many open employment positions, firefighters and law enforcement officers from around Colorado miraculously stopped a raging firestorm with the help of Mother Nature. Only two people were confirmed dead, and only eight were reported injured.
Some 37,500 residents, plus many more business customers and employees, evacuated from the spreading flames. Though everyone’s story is unique, those affected by the fire share common experiences. They all fled with little warning from the encroaching flames. They all located temporary shelter. They all must decide whether to rebuild or start over someplace new. Many events occurred during and after the fire that can only be called miracles.
The book is based on the Boulder County fire and law enforcement dispatch tapes, interspersed with interviews and stories of participants, with history tales thrown in for context. Chapters are headed by the area’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration hourly weather reports as the winds played a powerful part. All events are factual and written without bias.
I wish to express my gratitude to those who helped me gather these stories and put them to paper. First off, to my wife, for allowing me to hole up in my office for six months pounding away on the computer. Then to those firefighters and law enforcement officers who provided firsthand accounts and insight into the logistics that went into battling such a large conflagration. And to Code 10 Photography for allowing me to use so many of their pictures. And of course, a big thanks to those who shared their individual stories.
Hopefully, Inferno! will provide all those reading it with a greater appreciation of the history of the area, the events that took place around the fire, and the bravery shown by those who helped fight it.

Message from Chief John Willson, Louisville Fire Protection District
Louisville, Colorado, has a rich firefighting history. From its first hose cart in 1887 pulled by ten strong men, Louisville Fire has protected the community and surrounding areas. Brave Louisville firefighters have always responded quickly and trained hard for calls without showing fear for themselves. Louisville’s largest fire prior to Marshall occurred in November 1926 and almost destroyed wooden downtown. But with the help of neighboring firefighters, the fire was contained, and damage was limited to four buildings.
Our motto, Our Family Serving Your Family, captures our sprit of a motivated and dedicated crew providing help no matter what. Our career and volunteer firefighters are driven by passion, innovation, and serving the needs of all. We operate our three fire stations twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, ready to respond to any need. We train continuously to be able to serve in any situation.
The December 2021 Marshall fire challenged our training to the utmost. Our crews valiantly stayed in service fighting the conflagration for almost twenty-four hours straight. But with perseverance and the help of neighboring firefighters, the most destructive fire in state history was over. Though many structures were damaged and destroyed in our city, we will rebuild better and stronger. I am honored to serve as their fire chief.

Message from Commander Randy Wilber, Boulder County Sheriff’s Office
Wildland fires in Colorado are rare in December. But December 30, 2021, was not a typical December day. The Chinook winds were blowing, and the vegetation was tinder dry. The North Broadway fire in the 5000 block of Boulder started just before 10:00 a.m. Fire crews responded quickly and contained it within a few minutes to less than a couple of acres. Then dispatch called out a grass fire near Middle Fork Road at 10:27 a.m. Firefighters already deployed diverted to it within minutes, but the wind caused the fire to burn rapidly with flames reaching four-foot high. By 11:04 a.m., almost forty acres were involved. As structures were threatened, I arrived on-site to coordinate evacuations. The wind was horrendous. Over thirty-six fire trucks were deployed from seventeen different fire stations to fight the fire. During lulls in the extremely high winds, we saw a large plume of smoke to the south and heard chaotic and frantic radio calls. The Marshall fire had begun. We soon understood that we were dealing with the wrong fire.
During my twenty-four years of service with the Boulder County Sheriff’s Department, I assisted with many wildfires—the 2003 Overland fire, 2009 Old Stage fire, 2010 Fourmile fire, 2016 Cold Springs fire, and 2020 Cal-Wood and Lefthand Canyon fires. In all of these, we collaborated with the firefighters, predicted how the fire would behave, and deployed our deputies accordingly, issuing pre-evacuation notices, knocking on doors, and closing the few mountain roads affected. We had time to coordinate our efforts. That was not the case with the Marshall fire.
The Marshall fire was the fastest, craziest fire ever. It was discovered as a grass fire about 11:20 a.m. and started burning homes within ten minutes as the high winds pushed it eastward. We could hear the frantic radio calls as the fire exploded. By noon, Costco and the Sagamore subdivision in Superior were under attack. The fire spread over three miles in half an hour. I thought for sure we would lose many civilians, f