Wildland Fires

Wildland Crew MemberWildland Fire

The Sheriff, by Colorado State Statute, is the "Fire Warden" of the County.

Colorado Revised Statutes 

29-22.5-103(2) Wildland fires - general authority and responsibilities.

(a) The sheriff is the fire warden of the county and is responsible for the planning for, and the coordination of, efforts to suppress wildfires occurring in the unincorporated area of the county outside the boundaries of a fire protection district or that exceed the capabilities of the fire protection district to control or extinguish in accordance with the provisions of section 30-10-513, C.R.S.
(b) In the case of a wildfire that exceeds the capabilities of the fire protection district to control or extinguish and that requires mutual aid and outside resources, the sheriff shall appoint a local incident management team to provide the command and control infrastructure required to manage the fire. The sheriff shall assume financial responsibility for fire fighting efforts on behalf of the county and the authority for the ordering and monitoring of resources.
(c) In the case of a wildfire that exceeds the capability of the county to control or extinguish, the sheriff shall be responsible for seeking the assistance of the state, by requesting assistance from the division. The sheriff and the director shall enter into an agreement concerning the transfer of authority and responsibility for fire suppression and the retention of responsibilities under a unified command structure.