May is Wildfire Awareness Month, and West Metro is holding a series of fire station open houses to help you learn how to stay safe.

Open house schedule:

Sunday, May 7:

• West Metro Station 6 – 10am to Noon (15100 W. 6th Ave.)
• West Metro Station 13 – 10am to noon (12613 W. Indore Pl.)
• West Metro Station 17 – 1pm to 3pm (10901 W. 38th Ave.)
• West Metro Station 9 – 1pm to 3pm (downtown Morrison)

Saturday, May 13:

• West Metro Station 4 – 10am to Noon (13155 W. Alameda Ave.)
• West Metro Station 15 – 10am to Noon (6220 N. Roxborough Dr.)
• West Metro Station 11 – 1pm to 3pm (15629 W. Belleview Ave.)
• West Metro Station 5 – 1pm to 3pm (14055 W. 20th Ave.)

On March 31, a wind-whipped wildfire raced up the ridge near Highway 93 and I-70. Three neighborhoods in West Metro's district were put on pre-evacuation notice. The Hogback Fire burned 44 acres and took three days of mop up before it was 100% contained. No structures were damaged or lost. 

Fast growing and potentially dangerous wildfires like the Hogback Fire used to be limited to a defined fire “season.” Now, they can happen at any time of the year when dry or drought conditions are combined with critical fire weather- like gusty winds. Since January of this year, we’ve already had more than a half-dozen Red Flag Warnings in West Metro’s district. Since the Marshall Fire in Boulder County in December 2021, we know that wildfires can happen anywhere in the wildland-urban interface- in open spaces and where parks or undeveloped land border neighborhoods.

Defensible space is a property's first line of defense against wildfire. Creating and maintaining defensible space around homes can improve the property's likelihood of surviving a wildfire. Having defensible space also makes it safe for firefighters who may have to defend someone's home.