Lower North Fork Escaped RX 2012

The Lower North Fork Prescribed Fire Project,  located south of Conifer, Colo., is part of a large scale restoration effort on Denver Water property. Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS) planned the project to consist of six units. The 50 acre Unit 4A is one of the units identified for prescribed fire application following mastication treatments. On Thursday, March 22, 2012, Unit 4A was ignited according to plan. Ignition was completed by 2000 that evening. On Friday, March 23, crews worked to secure the burn and by the end of the day, the prescribed fire was put into patrol/monitor status. To this point in time operations were completed according to the plan with no problems. On Monday March 26, 2012, a three-­person crew was monitoring the Unit during a “red flag warning”.   At approximately 1315 winds carried a stream of ground level embers across the established prescribed fire control line. This complex series of winds resulted in two spot fires outside control lines that were quickly contained by mop­‐up/ patrol personnel on scene.  The crew responded to a third spot fire at 1340 located approximately 1500 feet southeast down the control line from the two earlier contained spot fires. The new spot fire quickly became established and it exceeded the capacity for control by ground   forces resulting in an escape and subsequent conversion to a wildfire at 1430.