March 18, 2015 VOLU M E 5 4 | I S S UE 1 1 | 7 5 ¢
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O’Connor steps down, Buckley steps up By Pat Hill
phill@coloradocommunitymedia.com After 13 years, Divide Fire Chief Tom O’Connor is stepping down, handing the reins to Chuck Buckley, nine-year veteran of the fire protection district. Looking back over the years, O’Connor, who joined the department in 1993, highlights the accomplishments of the all-volunteer firefighting force. “Over the years we’ve been able to purchase new equipment and recently purchased a 2,000-gallon wildland tender,” he said. With an annual budget of $240,000 for two stations, the district, under O’Connor, focused on training. “We’ve always provided money for folks to learn the skills to be involved - but they can take those skills and move on, if they want,” O’Connor said. “We have a lot of volunteers who are now fulltime firefighters, EMTs and nurses; we even had one who became a doctor.” Under O’Connor, the number of volunteers increased from 12 to 40, which includes Deputy Chief Steve Menz and District administrator Tim O’Connell. “We’re very fortunate to have the dedicated people we do,” he said. “I think they see the good we do and the people who volunteer.” Along with the updated equipment and thermal imaging camera, the Divide department reflects a throwback to bygone days. “Fire departments are one of the oldest established volunteer groups, going back to the time of Ben Franklin,” Buckley
said. “But it’s been on a steady downslide so we’ve been fortunate as the town continues to grow.” In a time of changing demographics, the Divide department is unique. “This group has done a phenomenal job; it really comes down to Tom’s leadership and the team he’s had because we focus a lot on the members,” Buckley said. “You’ve got to do that. Because if they’re not enthused and don’t want to come in why would they do it?” O’Connor credits the volunteers for attracting other members. “Because of that we are relied upon by other districts; we have a great mutual-aid system,” O’Connor said. “The Hayman Fire really brought us together and since then we’re just that much better.” Yet wildland fire remains the single biggest threat to the county, O’Connor said. “Just the intensity of it, we’ve seen it - the Waldo Canyon and Black Forest fires,” he said. “There’s just no stopping it.” However, lessons learned from the Hayman resulted in better communication among all agencies when fire strikes. “I think we’ve done a great job in the county to try to hit those as fast possible,” O’Connor said. `That takes coordinated effort throughout all the departments.” At 4.25 mills, Divide has one of the lowest mill levies in Colorado. “That’s both good and bad,” O’Connor said. “One of my biggest concerns is that a fire during the middle of the week is always a challenge. At some point, do we need to look at paid responders or a paid chief?
Tom O’Connor, left, hands the chief helmet to Chuck Buckley, who is replacing O’Connor as Chief of the Divide Fire Protection District. O’Connor is stepping down after 13 years as chief. At right, is the district’s administrator Tim O’Connell. Photo by Pat Hill Of 30,000 fire departments in the United States, roughly 75 percent are run by volunteers, Buckley said. ‘That’s a tremendous savings to the taxpayer, saves the U.S. economy billions of dollars,” he said. Last year, the department responded to 410 calls, 65 percent of which were medi-
cal. “We show up and people look at us like we’re the angels that just came in from the outside,” Buckley said. “We provide a level of support and comfort; they are in a vulnerable state, hurt or sick. So it’s a great way to give back to the community.”
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THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
The closure gates along Highway 24 By Jessica Allison
1 2 3 4 Why? A Colorado Department of Transportation maintenance team patrols the highway any time it begins to rain or the National Weather Service issues a flood advisory. This team then determines whether or not to close the corridor depending on conditions and if the weather service issues a flash flood warning for the area. In 2014, U.S. Highway 24 was closed eight times during peak flood season (May to September).
Journalism, University of Missouri
How much? The project cost $1 million, which came directly from state funds. “This particular pool of money was carved out by the governor’s declaration for a state of emergency,” CDOT project manager Andy Stecklein said. “So there was a certain amount of funds that were earmarked for addressing the safety concerns (near the Waldo Canyon burn scar).”
How many? There will be 11 gates in total, as seen in the diagram below. Currently eight of the gates are up between Manitou Springs and Cascade. Stecklein expects all 11 to be up by the end of the month, although the project will continue into April as CDOT finalizes remote control of the gates and other electronic work.
How will we know? Stecklein said additional variable message signs are going up along the highway, which will illuminate a message to drivers should the highway close. You can also sign up for SMS alerts from CDOT regarding highway closures by going to codot.gov/travel/getconnected.html and selecting “US 24 Ute Pass” on the subscriber preferences page.