Today, Sheriff Roybal, Fire Warden for El Paso County, and members of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office participated in the planned Ute Pass Evacuation Drill and Preparedness Fair- a mock wildfire evacuation drill in the Chipita Park and Green Mountain Falls area. The exercise created a mock scenario of a fast-moving wildfire, creating threats to residents and tourists in the area.
Several dozen households and small businesses participated in the exercise, beginning with door knock evacuation warning and emergency messaging from Peak Alerts and the El Paso- Teller 911 Authority. Participants experienced door-to-door evacuation procedures, as well as a chance to experience mock-emergency alerts.
Fire responders trained on evacuation, education, and scenario-based procedures, working through a myriad of rapidly changing weather conditions, and technological issues.
“I am extremely happy with the results from today’s Ute Pass Evacuation Drill and applaud the various agencies and citizen participants for their hard work, and thoughtful participation. It is imperative we prepare for a variety of emergency situations in the Pikes Peak region, wildland fire being one of the more serious, likely scenarios. These exercises are crucial for our agencies to participate in, preparing us for when the emergency occurs.”
“I commend the multiple agencies and residents who participated in today’s event, and congratulate them for a collaborative, successful training event. I want to especially acknowledge Andrew Notbohm with the Pikes Peak Regional Office of Emergency Management and Green Mountain Falls Marshal Sean Goings for the work they and their teams did preparing for today’s exercise. I appreciate the strong partnership we have with all our partners and our community.”
Special thanks to the Town of Green Mountain Falls, Green Mountain Falls Marshal Office, Green Mountain Falls Fire Department, Chipita Park Fire Department, Red Cross, Cascade Volunteer Fire Department, El Paso County, Humane Society/ CART, and the Pikes Peak Regional Office of Emergency Management, as well as the residents of Green Mountain Falls/ Ute Pass.
