Tribune Tri Lakes 7.10.13
Tri-Lakes
July 10, 2013
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A Colorado Community Media Publication
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Tri-Lakes Region, Monument, Gleneagle, Black Forest and Northern El Paso County • Volume 48, Issue 28
Fire marshals stress importance of mitigation Homeowners help the firefighters when they reduce fuels around the outside of the home By Lisa Collacott
lcollacott@ourcoloradonews. com By now everyone living in the Pikes Peak region has seen the destruction from the Waldo Canyon Fire and Black Forest Fire. For years local fire departments have been stressing the importance of mitigation because as they have said repeatedly about wildfires “it’s not if but when.” Margo Humes, fire marshal for Westcott Fire Protection District, said the department has received
two grants recently to do fire mitigation in Pleasant View Estates and Shamrock Ranch. A lot of mitigation was done along Colo. 83 to create a shaded fuel break and she said the Black Forest Fire did not cross over the shaded fuel break. “It made a difference,” Humes said. Humes and John Vincent, fire marshal for the Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Protection District, stress the importance of homeowners doing their part in saving their homes and that’s by fire mitigation. “As I’ve told the HOA’s when I’m briefing them, I am not going to die to protect your home. None of the fireman are,” Vincent said. “It should never be sacrificing life to save a property,” Humes added. “Homes are important to
us. We don’t want anybody’s home to burn. That’s what we’re trying to avoid but people have to help themselves to. We can’t do it all.” “We are not callous,” Vincent said, adding that fire departments have minimal resources to fight a fire. “If we spent the amount of money we spend on fighting a forest fire in pre-mitigation efforts we would spend less.” Vincent and Humes have been working to get the message of mitigation out and have even been approached by other towns and municipalities to give presentations. “John and I have really, really tried to get the message out to people. We continue to do so. We’ve had homeowner Mitigation continues on Page 10
Members of the Westcott Fire Protection District put tree branches in a chipper during a community clean-up day for Pleasant View Estates in May. The community has a bi-annual fire mitigation day. Local fire departments have stressed the importance of fire mitigating to protect homes from wild land fires.Photo by File photo by Lisa Collacott
Family looks for justice for Dylan Redwine Sheriff ’s office has not named any suspects, active investigation By Lisa Collacott
lcollacottourcoloradonews.com
The Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief team will remain in the Black Forest area through the end of July. Volunteers from around the United States are helping victims of the recent fire. Pictured from left to right are Wes Johnson (incident commander), John Wells (senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Black Forest) and Fritz Wilson (national executive director for disaster relief). Photo by Danny Summers
Disaster relief team lends hand to fire victims Volunteers will remain in the area through the end of the month By Danny Summers Volunteer teams representing Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief will remain in the Black Forest area until at least the end of July. That word came from Fritz Wilson, national executive director for disaster
relief, who has been in the area overseeing teams and projects. “Things are going really well,” Wilson said. “We’ve had volunteers in from California, Arizona, Missouri, Georgia, Oklahoma and Washington. People from all around the country are coming here to help and lend a hand. “Many of our volunteers came from Moore, Oklahoma, where they were helping clean up after the violent tornado.” The relief workers are POSTAL ADDRESS
doing everything from operating heavy equipment and cutting down charred trees, to cleaning up ash to helping homeowners sift through soot trying to find valuables. Chaplains are also brought in to help residents deal with the emotional and spiritual trauma in their lives. “Every disaster is unique,” Wilson said. “Whether its fire, flood hurricane or tornado. For the people in Black Forest, this is their Katrina. “I try not to make too
many comparisons, but this is a big event.” The volunteers first arrived shortly after the fire erupted on June 11. As many as 125 folks are on location each week. Most of them are being housed at the First Baptist Church of Black Forest (10865 Black Forest Road). The over flow are staying at Vista Grande Baptist Church (5680 Stetson Hills Blvd.). “This is just another opportunity for us to do Relief continues on Page 10
The bracelets read “Hope for Dylan Redwine” and for seven months his family and friends held on to hope that he would come home. On June 27 the family was notified that the teen had been found but it wasn’t the ending they were hoping for. After investigators conducted a search of Middle Mountain Road near Vallecito Lake the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office received news back from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation that human remains found during that search were that of Dylan. Now instead of searching for him investigators are now focusing on what happened to him. “We have no new breaks in the case. We have not labeled anyone as a suspect,” Dan Bender, public information officer for the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office, said. Dylan Redwine went missing Nov. 19, the day after arriving in Vallecito to spend Thanksgiving with his father during a court ordered visit. Dylan was 13-years-old at the time and was an eighth grader at Lewis-Palmer Middle School. Dylan and his mom had moved to the
Monument area from Bayfield a few months before. Dylan’s father, Mark Redwine, said he left his home to run errands that morning and when he returned Dylan was gone. During an interview with The Tribune in February Elaine Redwine, Dylan’s mom, said she had “hope that Dylan will come home safe.” Her thoughts were consumed with bringing Dylan home safe and wondering what happened to him. Elaine Redwine had Redwine to eventually return to her job but made the six hour drive to Durango every weekend to search for her son. The search of Middle Mountain Road was not based on any recent tips or new information. “The search of Middle Mountain Road was one of a series of searches since the snow melted. It’s an area we have searched in the past and we always intended to go back there,” Bender said. The La Plata County Sheriff’s Office along with several other agencies had been searching the area around Vallecito Lake since Dylan disappeared and had to wait for the snow to melt to go back into some areas. According to the Durango Herald Mark Redwine continues on Page 10
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