Red flag fire warning in effect in Eagle County until 8 p.m.

The Eagle County www.ecalert.orgsystem sent out the following text alert to citizens who are signed up for Red Flag alerts:
“Red Flag Warning for Eagle County, Friday, 08-16-2019 from Noon until 8:00 pm for areas under 7500 feet in elevation.  Fire restrictions will apply Please see www.ecemergency.org for details.” 

Be prepared!  Anytime the National Weather Service issues a Red Flag Warning for our area, fire restrictions will automatically be implemented throughout unincorporated Eagle County (excluding Federal lands).  

• A Red Flag Warning is a forecast warning issued by the National Weather Service to inform area firefighting and land management agencies that conditions are ideal for wildland fire combustion and rapid spread. (Wikipedia)

In June of 2019, Eagle County officials updated the local fire restrictions ordinance and will be monitoring for National Weather Service “Red Flag Warnings”. The updated ordinance clarifies fire restrictions with what is allowed and not allowed and includes the implementation of automatic fire restrictions during specific periods of a ‘Red Flag Warning’.  Under the updated Fire Restrictions Ordinance, Eagle County will automatically move into fire restrictions during the specific time frame of a Red Flag Warning without any further action from the Sheriff. 

All Eagle County updates about fire restrictions, information and an interactive map are located at http://www.ecemergency.org/p/eagle-county-fire-restrictions-info.html.  
 
Eagle County officials urge the community to sign up for Eagle County Alerts (www.ecalert.org). Update your preferences regularly and sign up to receive alerts for ‘Red Flag / Fire Warnings’ in ‘preferences’ under ‘Community Alerts’.

During times that Eagle County is not implementing regular fire restrictions and a Red Flag Warning is issued, all of unincorporated Eagle County (excluding Federal lands) will automatically move into Stage 1 Fire Restrictions.  The fire restrictions listed in the attached image under “Stage 1 Flag Restricted Activity” will be implemented throughout the duration of the Red Flag Warning. (Stage 1 Fire Restrictions flyer attached) 

In the event that Eagle County has already enacted “Stage 1 Fire Restrictions” and a “Red Flag” warning is issued, all of unincorporated Eagle County (excluding Federal lands) will then automatically move into Stage 2 Fire Restrictions.  The fire restrictions listed in the attached image under “Stage 2 Red Flag Restricted Activity” will be implemented throughout the duration of the Red Flag Warning. 

Please remember that Fireworks are always prohibited on BLM, National Forest and National Park Service lands.

The Eagle County Sheriff’s Office would like to encourage residents and visitors to take personal responsibility and prepare before a wildland fire occurs. 

• For more information about fire restrictions on federal lands, log on to https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/r2/recreation/?cid=stelprdb5370444
   
• For information about fire restrictions and information across the state of Colorado please visit: http://www.coemergency.com/p/fire-bans-danger.html