Federal crews are set to take over coordination of the efforts to contain the High Park Fire just northwest of Fort Collins, CO. The fire started on Saturday and exploded to over 20,000 acres by Sunday evening. Many people have been evacuated and displaced and air quality warnings have been issued.

Here is the news release from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

June 9, 2012

No.: R8-12-010

FEMA Region VIII News Desk

303-235-4908

News Release

 

FEMA AUTHORIZES FUNDS TO HELP FIGHT COLORADO'S HIGH PARK FIRE

DENVER - The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the High Park Fire located in Larimer County.

FEMA Regional Administrator Robin Finegan approved the state's request for a Federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) at 7:19 p.m on June 9, 2012. The fire has burned in excess of 4,000 acres of federal and state/private lands.

At the time of the request the fire was threatening 150 homes in and around Fort Collins, population 299,630. The fire is also threatening campgrounds in the area, the Stove Canyon and Poudre Canyon watersheds and an unknown amount of other infrastructure.

The authorization makes FEMA funding available to pay 75 percent of the state's eligible firefighting costs under an approved grant for managing, mitigating and controlling designated fires.

FMAGs are provided through the President's Disaster Relief Fund and made available by FEMA to assist in fighting fires that threaten to cause a major disaster. Eligible items can include expenses for field camps; equipment use, repair and replacement; mobilization and demobilization activities; and tools, materials and supplies.

These grants do not provide assistance to individual home or business owners and do not cover other infrastructure damage caused by the fire.

FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders and to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

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