Friday, August 24, 2007

Cooperation took kink out of the fire hose


In the midst of all the controlled anxiety caused by the Castle Rock Fire's creeping, scorching and torching, there have been moments of comedy.

Late Thursday, the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality put out a press release announcing a "Burn Ban," which was received with a lot of laughter by those who saw it.

This is not to berate the DEQ, which along with the announcement earnestly delivered a most welcome electronic air monitor to the Wood River Valley that will deliver reports to help residents judge how to conduct activities when the air is smoky.

The air monitor is just one piece of the many resources that are now coming to the valley as a result of a bi-partisan political effort at the local, state and federal level.

What was characterized as a "bureaucratic snafu" by Blaine County Commissioner Tom Bowman had left the city of Ketchum and the Ketchum Rural Fire District wondering if they would have enough fire engines to protect homes threatened by the fire.

A bureaucratic morass of arcane gray regulations in fine print had threatened to hamstring structure-protection efforts.

But then state and federal politicians laid aside their partisan labels and started burning up the phone lines.

Idaho District 25 Sen. Clint Stennett, D-Ketchum, and Republican Idaho Gov. Butch Otter called on Idaho's congressional delegation, all Republicans, and Massachussets Sen. John Kerry, a Democrat, to put pressure on Washington, D.C.

In a joint effort, they moved the Castle Rock Fire to the No. 1 spot on the nation's fire-fighting priority list. The valley will now get the state and federal help it needs to fight the fire that threatens not only homes but Bald Mountain, the centerpiece of skiing in Sun Valley, the nation's first destination ski resort.

After the No. 1 designation, Interagency Commander Jeanne Pincha-Tulley suddenly was able to call in far more resources than before.

The politicians took the kink out of the fire hose.

Being No. 1 is a great relief to residents, businesses, second-home owners and visitors who daily see the sometimes-dramatic pyrotechnics of back-burn control efforts.

Good news also came with the announcement that the Wagon Days parade, concerts, bike race and duck race will still go on over Labor Day weekend. Lots of people want to show their support for Ketchum and the valley by participating.

It all goes to show what good things can happen when people of goodwill set aside political differences and come together to deal with a common enemy.

This kind of cooperation should be the model for our too often divided nation.




 Local Weather 
Search archives:


Copyright © 2024 Express Publishing Inc.   Terms of Use   Privacy Policy
All Rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Express Publishing Inc. is prohibited. 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.