Date: 08/24/2015
Final
Colorado State Fire Chiefs
WILDFIRE MATTERS REVIEW COMMITTEE
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11:09 AM -- Colorado State Fire Chiefs
Mr. Garry Briese, Executive Director of the Colorado State Fire Chiefs (CSFC), testified to the committee. Also present with Director Briese at the table were Mr. Einar Jensen, Life Safety Educator at the South Metro Fire Rescue Authority, and Mr. Mike Morgan, Colorado River Fire Rescue Fire Chief.
Director Briese presented the committee with overview of these seven recommendations from CSFC:
- ensure the stability and reliability of the current Colorado statewide emergency radio system;
- continue to invest in the development, expansion, and implementation of the state resource mobilization plan;
- expand the current local, regional, and state command, control, and coordination capabilities;
- provide sufficient funding to DFPC to fulfill its stated missions, and request that DFPC provide a report concerning the status of the allocated funding and FTEs for each of its areas of assigned responsibilities;
- increase DFPC outreach efforts to familiarize local fire chiefs and sheriffs with state aviation resources that are now available and their capabilities to ensure seamless integration into the current local incident command structures;
- develop measurable and clearly articulated performance objectives for response to fires in WUI areas to guide the response of resources; and
- create and fund a sustained, ongoing, standardized statewide mitigation education effort by DFPC, Colorado Forest Service, US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and the insurance industry.
A copy of Director Briese's testimony is provided in Attachment E.
150824 AttachE- CSFC Testimony.pdf
Director Briese, Mr. Jensen, and Chief Morgan responded to questions from the committee regarding how the committee has responded to these recommendations in the past; how CSFC works with DPS regarding annual budgetary requests; how CSFC may be able to interface with the CoE; what CSFC's role is in trying to address Colorado's larger fire mitigation and forest management issues; what responsibilities homeowners in WUI areas have regarding mitigation efforts and these homeowners' attitudes towards wildfire risk; the role of grants and other monetary incentives needed to get homeowners to engage in mitigation efforts on their property; how insurance issues differ between floods and fires, including building on a flood plain compared to building in a WUI area; and how firefighting and funding responsibilities can transfer between local, county, and state agencies during a wildfire.
Chief Morgan also spoke to the committee about the impact the CoE has had and is expected to have in the future from a local perspective.
12:04 PM
The committee recessed for lunch.