Coming clean on cause of 416 Fire

To the editor,

You don’t need to be a fire expert to uncover the culprit of the 416 Fire in Durango. All clues point to the train: videos, witness accounts and the map of the fire on June 1, which shows the initial burn starting right at the train track. Yet authorities have not named the cause of the fire and are “still investigating.” Is it a cover up?

Transparency and accountability is important in this investigation. So we urge authorities to do the right thing for all the inhabitants of La Plata County.

For those who may not know, train coal engines spew embers from the chimney, which regularly start fires. So much so that each train is followed by a cart with a water tank to extinguish the train’s fires. So the use of coal engines to operate the train in an extreme drought and heat ? when a fire ban is in effect ? is purely and simply reckless. As a community we need to take future measures so that such disaster never happens again. One measure is simple: forbid the use of coal engines during droughts, replacing them with diesel engines, which are safer.

No one in this town wants to see the train go away as it is an engine ? pun intended ? of our tourist economy. But this fire ? and potentially future fires if we don’t take drastic prevention measures ? will further devastate our lands and bankrupt our economy. Who will come to Durango to ride/hike trails in a charred forest? Who is going to ride the train if the Animas Valley is a spectacle of burnt desolation?

The economic cost of wildfires is astronomical and far reaching. In a study by the BLM (“The True Cost of Wildfire in the Western U.S.,” at https://www.blm.gov/or/ districts/roseburg/plans/collab_forestry/files/TrueCostOfWilfire.pdf) explains that wildfires have direct costs (the obvious cost of fire suppression/firefighting, but also the cost of burned property, damaged infrastructure such as roads or powerlines, aid to evacuated residents, loss of timber resources), and indirect costs (loss of tax revenue, business revenue, property value, crop and timber harvesting loss). Indirect costs are also called “impact” costs (mostly economic) and can extend years after the fire is out. But there are also additional long-term costs, which include extensive loss of aesthetic and scenic beauty, loss of wildlife and ecosystems, and long-term effects on people’s health, some of which are difficult to quantify.

The Missionary Ridge Fire of 2002 burned for 39 days, ravaging about 73,000 acres, destroying 46 houses and cabins, and killing one person. According to the BLM study, direct fire suppression costs of the Missionary Ridge Fire amounted to $37.7 million and other direct costs to $52.6 million. Rehabilitation costs were at $8.6 million, indirect costs at $50.5 million, and additional costs at $3.4 million. In all, the Missionary Ridge Fire total cost was $152.8 million.

The cost of the 416 Fire will be staggering. So, as a community we need to find out what really happened (and be transparent) and make sure that this never happens again. For now, the whole community is bracing itself and hopes to minimize its losses. We all thank the firefighters for the tremendous work they are doing to keep us safe and contain the fire. Pray for rain.

– Cecile Patrick, Durango