Colorado Springs Fire Marshal Brett Lacey recently spoke to Out There Colorado about the origins of 85% of wildfires in Colorado.
The top three causes are men, women, and children.
Whether through apathy, ignorance or plain old stupidity, humans are the cause of 85% to 90% of wildfires in the United States, according to the U.S. Forest Service and the National Interagency Fire Center.
"People are negligent when building campfires, handling barbecue grills, discarding cigarette butts, disposing of ashes, letting metal drag from vehicles, welding outdoors and just plain messing around with fire", Lacey said.“We're in a populated area, and we have people that are careless with fire and tons of combustible fuel sources,” he said.
When dry, hot, windy weather conditions exist, and persist, as over the past month, fire is on every Coloradan’s mind.
In Colorado, about half of the state’s 5.8 million residents are said to live in areas at risk for wildfire.
Credit: Out There Colorado
The top three causes are men, women, and children.
Whether through apathy, ignorance or plain old stupidity, humans are the cause of 85% to 90% of wildfires in the United States, according to the U.S. Forest Service and the National Interagency Fire Center.
"People are negligent when building campfires, handling barbecue grills, discarding cigarette butts, disposing of ashes, letting metal drag from vehicles, welding outdoors and just plain messing around with fire", Lacey said.“We're in a populated area, and we have people that are careless with fire and tons of combustible fuel sources,” he said.
When dry, hot, windy weather conditions exist, and persist, as over the past month, fire is on every Coloradan’s mind.
In Colorado, about half of the state’s 5.8 million residents are said to live in areas at risk for wildfire.
Credit: Out There Colorado
The nation saw 66,255 wildfires in 2022, which burned 7.6 million acres, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. Of those fires, the agency lists 61,429 as human caused.