VIDEO: Unattended campfire quickly extinguished along Miners Creek Road amid Stage 2 restrictions
Summit County Sheriff’s Office/Courtesy photo
Fire officials responded to and fully extinguished an unattended campfire near the top of Miners Creek Road on Sunday, July 5, after a backcountry user reported the smoke.
Summit County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Mike Schilling said crews were on-scene shortly after the report came in at 10:14 a.m. and found the fire unattended in the backcountry area between Frisco and Breckenridge.
A wildland crew from the U.S. Forest Service assisted in extinguishing the fire, according to Schilling, as did Summit Fire & EMS.
“We are thankful for Summit County’s responsible backcountry users,” Schilling wrote in a text message Sunday at 12:50 p.m. “They really are critical eyes and ears in the forest right now.”
Matt Benedict, wildland division chief for the Red, White and Blue Fire Protection District, also confirmed the fire was left unattended at a campsite.
Schilling said no one was onsite when crews arrived but the sheriff’s office is “looking into a few leads.”
Summit County remains under Stage 2 fire restrictions due to extremely dry conditions and elevated fire danger.
More information on current restrictions can be found at SummitFire.org/fire-restrictions.
All fire restriction violations can be reported to non-emergency dispatch at 970-668-8600.
Support Local Journalism
Support Local Journalism
As a Summit Daily News reader, you make our work possible.
Summit Daily is embarking on a multiyear project to digitize its archives going back to 1989 and make them available to the public in partnership with the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection. The full project is expected to cost about $165,000. All donations made in 2023 will go directly toward this project.
Every contribution, no matter the size, will make a difference.