Marshall Fire

Steve Nelson Photo ©

On December 30th, 2021 at 10:24 Mountain View Fire Rescue, Louisville Fire Protection District, and Lafayette Fire Department responded to a reported grass fire at S. Foothills Highway and Marshall Rd. Dispatch received reports of smoke in the area and possible powerlines down. Engine 2209 arrived to a low-hanging powerline and began traffic control, awaiting Xcel. Engine 2209 updated dispatch with a small fire just south of Marshall Rd. on Hwy. 93 and began fire attack, establishing S. Foothills Command. At 11:23 Command updated dispatch that the fire was moving east through the property toward homes and requested additional units. At 11:32 Mountain View 2262 requested two additional structure engines and one additional brush truck to assist. Crews arrived to extreme wind conditions and a wind-driven fire spreading quickly through the town of Superior and into Louisville. At 11:31 Marshall Command updated dispatch that structures were involved and requested additional resources. At 11:39 Louisville Battalion 2760 arrived and assumed Marshall Command, requesting additional resources from the City of Boulder. Command advised of a shed on fire north of the Park-n-Ride and requested next due units to respond there. At 11:40 Mountain View and Lafayette were dispatched to an additional brush fire at S Cherryvale Road and Marshall Drive with structures threatened and operated under Cherryvale Command. With 100+ mph winds, the Marshall Fire continued to spot ahead of of itself, creating new calls for additional fires. At 12:33, Lafayette Truck 2619 arrived on scene of multiple working residential fires on Cherokee Street and declared that they were pulling out. With multiple structures on fire, command requested all crews to avoid committing themselves and allow the fire to burn through with an attempt to catch it on the backside. By 13:00, fire departments from all over the state responded. Firefighters were able to save many homes with structure protection. The Rocky Mountain Area Type 1 Incident Management Team assumed command of the fire on Saturday, January 1st, 2022. The fire burned 6,219 acres and an estimated 1,084 structures were lost. On December 31st, 2021 to January 1st, 2021, a heavy snowstorm moved into the area which put the fire mostly under control and out. The fire cause is still under investigation, and was initial reported that it stated by downed power lines, but Xcel Energy found no downed power lines in the area where the fire started. An underground fire in abandoned coal mine may also be an possible source to the start of the fire. To make a donation go here: https://www.coloradogives.org/bouldercountywildfirefund…

Initial Response:

Mountain View: Engine 2209 & Brush 2232

Working Fire Response:

Allenspark: Engine 5202

Big Elk Meadows: Brush 4934

Boulder: Utility 2552, Engine 2501

Boulder Emergency Squad: Rescue 3121

Boulder Rural: Engine 2301, Brush 2331, Brush 2332, Medic 2321, Chief 2360, Utility 2353, Engine 2302

Boulder Mountain: Brush 4332, Engine 4301

Coal Creek Canyon: Tender 7042, Brush 7031, Engine 7003

Four Mile: Engine 4603, Brush 4631

Hygiene Fire Protection District: Engine 2803, Brush 2832

Lafayette: Brush 2631, Command 2662, Battalion 2660, Truck 2619, Brush 2632, Engine 2601, Engine 2602, Medic 2622

Longmont: Brush 2131, Brush 2133, Command 2167, Engine 2108

Louisville: Battalion 2760, Medic 2721, Medic 2722, Medic 2723, Training Engine 27, Training Medic 27, Engine 2702, Engine 2703, Brush 2732, Brush 2733, Tower 2718, Truck 2716, Chief 2761

Mountain View: Tower 2215, Truck 2216, Brush 2230, Brush 2234, Brush 2236, Brush 2238, Battalion 2260, Command 2262, Command 2266, Command 2269, Utility 2271, Rescue 2255, Medic 2225, Engine 2201, Engine 2203, Engine 2207, Tactical Tender 2242.

Nederland: Rescue 5621

North Metro: Engine 66

Boulder County Fire Management:

West Metro: Wildland 1, Brush Engine 9, Medic 11,

AMR Boulder: AMR 2

Departments / Agencies Assisting:

*Note, we have tried to add all the departments that responded or were requested, it became a long list, and was hard to get that info. If you do not see your department listed please let us know and we will add them.