Colorado extends Ferris Fire emergency, authorizes $958,000 for response and recovery
A new state order puts $958,000 toward broad Ferris Fire response and recovery uses but names no recipients, while the latest available records show high containment, lifted evacuations and no public evidence of non-Compact out-of-state EMS deployment.
Colorado extended the disaster emergency for the Ferris Fire and authorized $958,000 in state reserve money for suppression, mitigation and recovery.
The fire had burned 64,881 acres and was 97% contained as of Aug. 3, according to Gov. Jared Polis’ Aug. 6 executive order. The order did not provide a personnel count.
The order transfers the money from the State Emergency Reserve Cash Fund to the Disaster Emergency Fund and makes it available for Ferris Fire suppression, response, consequence management, mitigation and recovery. The Office of Emergency Management may distribute the money to government agencies and nonprofit organizations through awards, purchase orders or other mechanisms.
The order names no recipients, awards, vendors or line-item projects, and no public source reviewed for this update identified an expenditure from the authorization. The money will remain available for 72 months from Aug. 6. The extended disaster declaration expires 30 days after Aug. 6 unless Polis extends it again.
The order says existing money in the Disaster Emergency Fund is insufficient for fire-related work. It directs state agencies to seek federal funding and authorizes unarmed Colorado National Guard members to support suppression and response as determined necessary by the Colorado Department of Public Safety. The order does not establish that Guard members were deployed.
The order also temporarily suspends specified licensing and regulatory requirements for qualified out-of-state emergency medical providers from states outside the Emergency Medical Services Compact. Those providers must be requested through the Colorado Department of Public Safety’s incident-command structure and operate under the direction of medical directors from their home state and Colorado. No public record reviewed for this update showed that such a provider had been requested or deployed.
Fire status and remaining work
The latest official incident update located for this report said all Ferris Fire evacuations had been lifted. The San Juan National Forest and Bureau of Land Management reported that fire-specific area closures were lifted effective July 29, while warning about heavy equipment, fire-weakened trees, hot spots, ash pits, loose rock, flash flooding and debris flows.
The San Juan National Forest alerts page still displayed a Ferris Fire closure alert when checked for this update, creating an unresolved discrepancy with the July 29 incident information. Residents and visitors should check the latest agency notices before entering affected areas.
With containment high, crews have shifted toward suppression repair and recovery, including chipping fuels, removing hose and pumps, inspecting equipment, assessing erosion and other damage, and addressing hazards from burned trees and unstable ground, The Journal reported July 24.
The fire began June 27 after lightning ignited fires in and near the San Juan National Forest in Dolores and Montezuma counties. No later official acreage or containment update than Aug. 3 was located before this update.