FIRE SAFETY

ARE YOU READY? How to prepare for the worst-case scenario

Local info you simply can NOT google

Susan's

ASPEN INTEL

Christie's International Real Estate

Ready · Set · Go — wildfire preparedness for 81611, and what living east of the Castle Creek Bridge really means.

Fire Ready: A Wildfire Preparedness Guide for 81611

Aspen is one of the most fire-prone resort communities in the Rockies — steep, timbered terrain with a limited number of ways out. The reassuring part: surviving a wildfire here is overwhelmingly about preparation, not luck. This guide follows the three readiness stages emergency managers use — Ready, Set, Go — plus the one piece of local geography most people never consider until they're sitting in it: the bridge.

Quick Answers

• One way out. East of the Castle Creek Bridge, your primary route is across the bridge onto Highway 82, downvalley. That single crossing is the defining chokepoint of an Aspen evacuation.
• Leave early. A full evacuation of town can take 12+ hours. You may be asked to go sooner than feels reasonable — that margin is the plan working.
• Don't improvise a shortcut. Aspen Fire warns against Smuggler Street to McLain Flats Road, the Marolt pedestrian bridge, the Rio Grande Trail, and evacuating up Independence Pass.
• Sign up for alerts now. Pitkin Alert, ReachWell, and Watch Duty — before you need them, not during.

East of the Castle Creek Bridge: One Way Out

If you live east of the Castle Creek Bridge — the West End, the Aspen core, the East End, Smuggler, Mountain Valley, and everything up toward Independence Pass — your evacuation reality is different from the rest of the valley, and it's worth understanding before an emergency.

There is essentially one viable way out: across the Castle Creek Bridge onto Highway 82, downvalley. Everything east of the bridge funnels through that single crossing. A few hard truths follow from that:

A full evacuation could take 12+ hours.

Picture peak holiday-weekend traffic leaving town, then add panicked drivers and emergency vehicles coming the other way. A "quick" evacuation is not realistic. If you're asked to leave early, that's the plan working — not an overreaction.

Do not try to shortcut the bridge.

The instinct to outsmart traffic is exactly what blocks first responders and gets people stuck. Aspen Fire specifically warns against:

• Smuggler Street to McLain Flats Road — this compromises responders' access to bring resources into town.
• The Marolt pedestrian bridge — it is not a vehicle route.
• The Rio Grande Trail — do not attempt to evacuate down it.
• Up Independence Pass (Highway 82 east) — never evacuate uphill or into the high country unless directed by authorities. That's more exposed terrain, away from refuge.

Know your in-town areas of refuge.

Because the bridge can bottleneck, east-of-bridge residents should pre-identify safe places to shelter inside the core if the road jams and a fire front approaches: open, unburnable ground like the golf course, irrigated playing fields, large paved parking lots, concrete parking garages, and open streets and parks in the Aspen Core away from tall trees. Your car — parked on pavement away from vegetation, windows up — is itself strong shelter, far safer than fleeing on foot.

The takeaway for anyone east of the bridge: leave early, take 82 down, don't improvise a shortcut, and know where you'd shelter if you can't get across.

Ready — Before Anything Is Burning

Readiness is the work you do on a calm day. None of it is dramatic; all of it matters.

Sign up for alerts — all three.

• Pitkin Alert (Everbridge) — the county's official notification system, via Pitkin County Emergency.
• ReachWell — pushes every Pitkin Alert and translates into 190+ languages; good for households and guests.
• Watch Duty — a free app that maps active fires, perimeters, and evacuation zones in real time.

Build your evacuation plan.

• Map at least two ways out of your home and neighborhood — by car and on foot.
• Pick two family meeting places: one a safe distance from home, one outside the neighborhood in case you can't return.
• Pre-identify areas of refuge along your routes — an irrigated field, a ballfield, a large parking lot, a brick building, a parking garage.

Pack a go-kit — one per household, ready to grab.

• Three-day supply of food and water, for people and pets
• Prescription medications, first-aid kit, spare eyeglasses
• Battery AM/FM radio, flashlight, extra batteries, phone charger
• Copies of IDs and documents, cash or a credit card, spare car keys
• Three changes of clothing, sturdy footwear, a blanket or sleeping bag per person
• Special items for infants, seniors, or family members with disabilities

Create defensible space.

• Clear vegetation, especially shrubs within 15 feet of the house.
• Move firewood and stored combustibles away from the structure.
• This is the highest-leverage thing you can do to a property — and Aspen Fire offers free wildfire risk assessments and a chipper-day program to help.

Plan now for those who can't move quickly.

Children, seniors, neighbors with disabilities. Make a short list of who might need a ride, so no one is figuring it out in the moment.

Set — A Red Flag Is Up or Fire Is Near

This is the in-between stage: nothing has been ordered, but conditions say be ready to move. Don't wait for an official order if you feel unsafe — leaving early is always allowed and always smart.

• Monitor everything — alerts, radio, Watch Duty. Alert your household and neighbors.
• Dress for survival — long pants, long sleeves, cotton or wool (not synthetics), sturdy closed shoes.
• Stage the car — back it into the driveway, load your go-kit, point it toward the exit, windows up. Take the vehicle with the fullest tank; an SUV if you have the choice.
• Confine pets to one room with carriers ready; prep their food, water, and meds.
• Keep an out-of-area contact updated on your location and status.

If — and only if — you're certain you have time, protect the home.

Close all windows, vents, and doors; shut off gas or propane and pilot lights; move flammable furniture to the center of rooms; turn on a light in each room to help responders see your home through smoke; connect garden hoses and leave them visible; move propane tanks and grills into the garage.

Go — Leave Now

When evacuation is ordered — or the moment you feel genuinely unsafe — go. Don't hesitate, and don't stop to do more than grab what's already staged.

• Take your go-kit, lock your home, and tie a white towel, sheet, or ribbon on the front door — it signals responders the home is already evacuated.
• Tell someone when you left and where you're headed.
• Drive Highway 82 downvalley. Headlights on, seatbelt on, inside air and AC on, local news radio on. Proceed slowly and calmly — don't pass cars in low visibility.
• Fill every seat. Carpool. Pick up neighbors who can't get out on their own.
• Stay on pavement. Stay in your car. Glass and steel is genuinely a survival suit against embers, hot gases, and radiant heat. Abandoning it to run on foot is almost always more dangerous.

If the road is blocked or jammed.

• Stay calm. Flames along a roadside don't necessarily mean the road is impassable — you can usually drive through if you stay on pavement.
• If the route is truly blocked with no safe building nearby, shelter in your car: park on pavement away from vegetation, headlights and flashers on, windows and vents closed, AC off. Get low, below the windows, under a wool blanket if you have one. Call 911 with your location. Wait for the front to pass, then move to already-burned, treeless ground.
• Do not abandon your car in the roadway — it blocks everyone behind you, including the people trying to reach you.

After the Fire: Returning Home

Fire officials decide when it's safe to return. When you do:

• Watch for downed power lines and other hazards.
• Check propane tanks, regulators, and lines before turning gas back on.
• Inspect your home carefully for hidden embers or smoldering spots.

Know the Words Before You Hear Them

• Mandatory Evacuation / Evacuation Order — Leave now. No delay to gather things or prep the home.
• Pre-Evacuation Notice / Evacuation Warning — Leave as soon as possible. A short delay to grab valuables is OK. Go if you feel unsafe.
• Shelter in Place — Stay put. Usually issued when evacuation isn't needed and responders need clear, fast road access.
• Seek an Area of Refuge — A fire front is imminent; get to the safest nearby building or unburnable open ground and let it pass.

Local Resources — Save These

• Pitkin County Emergency: pitkinemergency.org — alerts, restrictions, live updates
• Aspen Fire Protection District: aspenfire.com · (970) 925-5532 · 420 E. Hopkins Ave., Aspen — request a free wildfire risk assessment
• Live wildfire cameras: aspen.wildfirewatch.com
• Apps: Pitkin Alert · ReachWell · Watch Duty (free, App Store & Google Play)
• Pitkin County non-emergency: (970) 920-5310  |  Emergencies: 911

This guide summarizes publicly available preparedness guidance from the Aspen Fire Protection District and Pitkin County Emergency Management. In a live event, always follow the direction of emergency officials.

Susan Plummer
Christie's International Real Estate Aspen
520 E. Durant Avenue, Suite 205, Aspen, CO 81611
970-948-6786 · susan@susanplummer.com