“When you face a crisis, you know who your true friends are.” ~ Magic Johnson As I write this on Wednesday morning, many of our friends and neighbors have either been evacuated due to the fires or are waiting to be told to evacuate. The skies are a little more[Read More…]
Author: Niki Turner
Forest Closure in place near Elk Fire in Blanco District
Closure in place to protect firefighter and public safety MEEKER | The White River National Forest has issued a public closure for firefighter and public safety in the vicinity of the Elk Fire in Rio Blanco County. The closure is within the Blanco Ranger District west of and including the[Read More…]
Elk and Lee Fire Update: Tuesday, Aug. 5
MEEKER | According to an update from the Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team 3 on Tuesday morning, the Elk Fire has burned 7,750 acres and the Lee Fire has burned 13,025 acres. Team 3 assumed command of the Elk and Lee fires this morning at 6 a.m. (Note:[Read More…]
Preparing for wildfire
Advance Preparation Checklist ❏ Prepare an emergency plan using the five P’s – people, pets, prescriptions, papers and priceless items should all be accounted for.❏ Assemble an emergency kit (https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/survival-kit-supplies.html)❏ Clear away all flammable vegetation from within 30 feet or more of your home. Also, clear 10 feet from propane[Read More…]
Additional evacuation and pre-evacuation orders issued for Lee Fire and Elk Fire residents
UPDATED: 2:02 p.m., 8/5 Elk Fire Evacuation Orders: County Road 8, MM 11-16: evacuation order in place GOSleepy Cat to Lake Avery- North side of the road – GOCounty Rd. 40 and 63 – GOCounty Road 49 evacuation order in place- GORecreationists near Yellow Jacket, Fawn Creek, Sleepy Cat Peak,[Read More…]
Elk Fire update: Monday, Aug. 4
MEEKER | Rio Blanco County officials held an emergency meeting Monday morning with updates on the Elk Fire, approximately 11 miles east of Meeker on County Road 8, following a “chaotic” day Sunday. County officials now confirm the Elk Fire at approximately 2,000 acres. Sheriff Anthony Mazzola reiterated that the[Read More…]
Elk Fire prompts emergency declaration, evacuation notice
MEEKER | A lightning-sparked wildfire that started Saturday, Aug. 2, approximately 10 miles east of Meeker in the Oak Ridge area along County Road 8, has grown to an estimated 600 acres according to the Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s Office, prompting a declaration of a local disaster emergency by the[Read More…]
Preparations for budget season get underway for RBC Commissioners
RBC | As local governments prepare for budget season, the Rio Blanco County Commissioners heard a presentation about the county’s insurance policies from Meredith Burcham of County Technical Services, Inc. (CTSI) during a work session last Tuesday. CTSI administers the County Health Pool (CHP), County Workers’ Compensation Pool (CWCP) and[Read More…]
EDITOR’S COLUMN – Becoming consistent
‘Reality control’, they called it: in Newspeak, ‘doublethink’.” ~ George Orwell, 1984 There’s a saying about consistency: “What you do every day matters more than what you do once in a while.” In July I signed up for ladies’ golf classes — a first for me — in an effort[Read More…]
CORRECTION: Correct time for Woolgrowers’ meal at the fair on July 31
RBC | The annual Rio Blanco County Woolgrowers’ meal at the County Fair was listed in the Fair Book and in the submitted article in the July 24 edition at the wrong time. The meal will be from 4-6 p.m. in the 4-H Exhibit Hall kitchen, not from 11 a.m.[Read More…]
Meeker trustees learn about survey markers, hear staff updates, and approve purchase of a portable toilet for Ute Park pump track
MEEKER | Town Clerk Lisa Cook performed the swearing in ceremony for newly re-appointed trustee Jeff Madison last Tuesday. Madison previously served as a trustee in the 1990s and has returned to the board to fill a vacancy left by Scott Nielsen. Trustees heard updates from town staff, including the[Read More…]
EDITOR’S COLUMN – It may not be your imagination… time is going faster
“Those who make the worst use of their time are the first to complain of its brevity.” ~ Jean de La Bruyère You can say “amen” or “ouch” to that quote. I’ve been chalking up the feeling that time is slipping through my fingers faster and faster to having another[Read More…]
