Chatridge 2 Fire

At 09:49 on June 29th, 2020 South Metro Fire Rescue responded to a brush fire with multiple 911 callers reporting a brush fire on the east side of Hwy. 85 at Chatridge Dr. in Douglas County. When firefighters arrived, they found several acres already burning with a flame front moving at a moderate to rapid rate of spread to the northeast. Structure protection was placed at the immediately threatened homes and the nearby Douglas County OEM contract helicopter was launched. As firefighters continued an aggressive direct attack on the ground additional air and ground resources were ordered. Dry vegetation, gusty winds and a rugged uphill path contributed to a rapid rate of spread toward the BackCountry community. Due to the high population and only 2 roads in and out of the neighborhood, the decision was made to evacuate all residents before the fire arrived. Firefighters prepared homes along Skydance Drive for the fires arrival as air tankers dropped retardant and helicopters precision dropped water. All firefighting efforts were successful, thankfully no one was injured, and no structures were damaged. By 15:30 the fire had grown to 461 acres and all forward spread was stopped. Investigators from the SMFR Fire Marshal’s Office determined that an electrical malfunction on a power pole sparked the fire. The Chatridge 2 Fire was very similar to the Chatridge Fire that burned the same area in October 2016, also the result of an electrical problem. Firefighters patrolled the burn area all night and extinguished hot spots. Additional crews will be working the fire all day June 30th, 2020 to reinforce the fire lines and fully extinguish the fire.  Additional information was provided by South Metro Fire Rescue.

Units on Scene:

South Metro: Battalion 1, Battalion 2, Battalion 4, District 1, District 10, Safety 10, Safety 18, Safety 35, Med 1, Ops 1, EMS 10, OEM 10, Wildland 30, Engine 11, Ladder 12, Engine 13, Engine 14, Engine 15, Engine 16, Engine 44, Medic 12, Medic 18, Brush 17, Brush 18, Brush 19, Brush 21, Brush 33, Brush 36, Brush Engine 39, Brush Engine 40, Brush Engine 41, Brush 42, Brush 46, Tender 34, Tender 41, Tender 45, Bureau 10, Bureau 23, PIO 10, Fleet Services, & Logistics

MetCom: IDT 2, IDT 11, & IDT 39

West Metro Fire Rescue: District 2, Brush 15, Brush 13, & Medic 13

West Douglas County Fire Protection District: Chief 131, Engine 131, Engine 133, Brush 133, Brush 134, & Tender 132

Castle Rock Fire Rescue: Chief 151, Brush 154, & Brush 155

Douglas County Office of Emergency Management: OEM 15, OEM 20 (Type 6), &  Type 2 Helicopter N1206G (Trans Aero)

Jackson 105 Fire Protection District: Brush 142, Tender 142, & Tender 143

Franktown Fire Protection District: Brush 184

Sable Altura Fire Rescue: Brush 41 & Tender 41

Kiowa Protection District: Brush 223

Fairmount Fire Protection District: Brush Engine 34

Adams County Fire Rescue: Brush 13

North Metro Fire Rescue District: Battalion 61 & Brush 61

Thornton Fire Department: Brush 76

Brighton Fire Rescue District: Brush 55

Westminster Fire Department: Attack 4 (Engine 165)

Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control: MMA Wildland 28

Air Support: Cañon Helitack Type 2 Helicopter N58HJ (Kachina Aviation), Tanker 22 (Airstrike), Tanker 862 (CO Fire Aviation SEAT) & Tanker 864 (CO Fire Aviation SEAT)

USFS Air Support: Air Attack N93ME, Lead Plane N618, Lead Plane N24HD, Type 1 Helicopter N613CK (Croman), Tanker 02 (Neptune Aviation), Tanker 16 (Neptune Aviation), Tanker 101 (Erickson Aero Tanker), Tanker 105 (Erickson Aero Tanker), & Tanker 167 (Aero Flite)

Bennett-Watkins Fire Rescue, Golden Fire Department, Golden Gate Fire Protection District & Douglas County Sheriff