08/18/08

Last Augusts’ Castle Rock Fire burned more than 48-thousand acres of land and threatened several homes near Ketchum.

And during the first week the fire raged, it became all too clear that fire fighters would have their hands full.

US Forest Service Fire Management Officer Randy Richter says, "The timber is old, over mature. There's a lot of fuels on the ground which made the fire difficult to fight. But then as the fire started working down Warm Springs Creek, it started getting into some cabins in the forest, and farther down, some homes."

The steep terrain made it more difficult for fire fighters to battle the huge blaze. But Richter says the cooperation between local fire departments, as well as state and federal fire fighting agencies was fantastic.

Bureau of Land Management Fire Management Officer Chris Simonson said, "BLM did have a lot of the acreage that was between the National Forest and the private lands, and the town of Ketchum and Sun Valley. So ours was fairly instrumental in that we were the buffer in between the Forest Service and the private lands."

Richter says there's still the potential for a large fire to head down into Ketchum. So he recommends that homeowners clear a safe space for a good distance around their dwellings, which will vary depending on the angle of the slope - and the type of vegetation.

Richter suggests, "Clear the brush out, keep the litter from the leaves cleaned up. And it certainly doesn't hurt to talk to their local fire protection agency to see if there's more they can do."