Seven First Responders In Grand Lake Lose Homes To East Troublesome Fire
GRAND COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - New information from the Grand Lake Fire Protection District states seven of its first responders have lost their home to the East Troublesome Fire. It is the second largest fire in state history -- burning more than 192,000 acres as of Sunday morning.
Ellie St. Germain, a volunteer with the department and the wife of Assistant Fire Chief Seth St. Germain, organized a GoFundMe page to help those first responders.
"Seven of those homes belonged to the first responders that gave all their energy, sleep and time to protect their community against this tragedy. This fundraiser will go directly to these homeless firefighters to help rebuild their life as well as the First Responders who gave everything to keep our community intact," Ellie said on the website.
The Grand County Sheriff says there is no known damage to property within the actual town of Grand Lake, however there is expected damage to rural, surrounding areas.
The fire made an enormous 100,000-acre run on Wednesday as winds pushed it past Highway 125 and up Highway 34. The towns of Grand Lake and Estes Park were evacuated.
The Town of Estes Park says residents in the west Estes Valley should expect their electricity to be restored Sunday afternoon after it was turned off on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Grand County Office of Emergency Management tells residents hundreds of power poles were damaged or destroyed by the fire.
"Miles of power lines are down," county officials said. The poles pose a hazard to firefighters, first responders and utility crews.
Utility crews, however, are trying to restore power to areas not threatened by the fire.
The sheriff's office says they are working numerous utility companies to work on plumbing and electricity issues.
LINK: East Troublesome Fire Evacuation Area
The sheriff's office acknowledged there are concerns from the public to get back to their property. Officials say they are working on plans to get residents back as soon as the fire threat is under control.
They did not provide an exact number of homes destroyed by the fire.
There are 424 fire personnel fighting the East Troublesome Fire, according to the U.S. Forest Service. It has burned more than 192,000 acres and is now 10% contained as snow falls across much of the area.
