Interlaken Fire Community Meeting will take place on the morning of June 15 – by Carly Winchell

Pre-evacuation advisories remain in place for Lost Canyon (County Road 30) and areas of Chaffee County north of County Road 390 to the county line (Cache Creek, Clear Creek).

The public is invited to an Interlaken Fire Community Meeting on Saturday, June 15 at 10 a.m. The meeting will be held at Leadville Lake County Fire Rescue Station 2 (141 County Road 10, Leadville).

The meeting is scheduled to provide an update on fire operations, and there will be a question and answer session with the incident commander, public information officer and local officials.

Video of the meeting will be posted on the Interlaken Fire Facebook page.

A Spanish-speaking interpreter will be present at the meeting.

Those seeking more information should call 719-301-4284 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

The announcement stated: “SPECIAL ANUNCION: There is a community meeting on the Interlaken fire on Saturday, June 15 at 10 a.m. at the Estación de Bomberos del Condado de Leadville Lake, 141 CR 10. The video was posted subsequently published. Spanish interpretation available.

Fire Update

The Interlaken fire is believed to have been caused by a poorly managed campfire. As of 7:34 p.m. on Friday, June 14, it covered 591 acres with 15 percent containment.

Late Thursday evening, fires occurred in the northwest portion of the fire and firefighters worked through the night to protect historic structures in Interlaken.

The Interlaken fire information page has published photos of the historic structures that have been protected so far and the pipes used to defend them.

Firefighters are trying to use existing features, such as the Interlaken Trail, to build fire protection lines. Additional crews are arriving to construct fire protection lines along the west/southwest boundary and in other areas along the fire perimeter.

Teams continue to collect information on the location of structures on private land in some areas.

Local search and rescue teams are helping by using boats to transport supplies across the lake to the fire zone. More helicopters arrive to help.

Several trail, lot, and road closures remain in effect, including the Interlaken Trailhead and parking area, Willis Gulch Trail, Willis Stump Trail, Sheep Gulch Trail, Colorado Trail, and segments Continental Divide National Scenic Trail in the Twin Lakes area from Clear Creek Road. at State Route 82, Red Rooster Day-Use Area, Moache Day-Use Area, Dexter Point Day-Use Area and Campground, Day-Use Area from Deception Point, to Forest Service Road 399, Forest Service Road 398 and dispersed camping around the lake.

The Twin Lakes acreage is closed. “The lakes are closed. We use them for helicopter operations. They collect or suck up the water and we don't want anyone nearby for everyone's safety,” the information page commented.

There is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) over the fire zone. “If you STEAL, we CAN’T,” the statement said. “Do not fly or use drones in this area as this will hamper firefighting efforts and ground our aircraft.”

Resources

People wishing to sign up for emergency alerts in Lake County can sign up on Everbridge. There is also a separate Everbridge Alert system available for Chaffee County.

A Facebook page has been created, called Interlaken Fire Information, which will provide updates on the fire.

There is also updated information at InciWeb.Wildfire.Gov.

A tip line for updates on the fire is available at 719-301-4284 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Email inquiries can be sent to [email protected].

The Lake County Sheriff's Office posted updates on evacuations and pre-evacuations on its Facebook page. Any questions regarding the evacuation should be directed to the Lake County Sheriff's Office at 719-486-1249.

Read Ark Valley Voices previous coverage here.