IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTICE: Debris Clean-up

chainsaw

“With Pinewood residents trickling back into the community and lots of cleanup needed on personal and public properties, many of you are beginning the process of tree, limb, and other debris removal.  The emergency response resources in Pinewood are still relatively small, and cleanup organization and planning is in process.

We recommend that residents wait a couple of weeks for the area cleanup plans to come together so more concerted and organized use of resources can be realized, including debris piling and removal sites locations.

If you do operate chain saws, particularly you recent purchasers of chain saws (and ATV/UTV toys) please be particularly safety conscious and careful in your efforts.  We highly recommend use of chainsaw chaps with any chainsaw activity.  We’d prefer to see the limbs being removed having originally been attached to trees.  We’ve got great videos on the possible nasty results if you need to be convinced.”

 

Andrew Lucas
Assistant Chief
Pinewood Springs Fire Protection District

(photo credit: Daily Camera)

2 Comments

  1. Aimee
    Nov 3, 2013

    Thanks for this message, Andrew.

    As the Kiowa bridge re-build effort has essentially created an access road into the Crescent Lake area, we have had many visitors stop by to see the new lay of the land and ask about cutting firewood.

    Rich and I now have a 150-foot long by 15-foot high by 20-foot deep log jam across what used to be our lovely tree and wildflower-filled meadow. This is a whole lot of wood, and probably will be more than we will need…

    However, we’d like to respectfully ask our neighbors to wait until we have had time to coordinate with the larger clean-up effort, and most importantly, to make things safer on our property.

    Therefore, for the moment, please do not cut firewood on our property. At a later date, we may be distributing our excess firewood, and we will keep you posted.

    In the meantime, you are all most welcome to come and stroll down the newly navigable riverbed; it’s quite beautiful once you get past all the debris that got caught up at our little bend in the river.

    Thank you,
    Aimee Sanders and Rich Parnell

  2. Aimee
    Nov 7, 2013

    FREE FIREWOOD – YOU CUT – YOU HAUL

    Dear neighbors,

    Bladeworks has taken the first layer of trees off of our log jam and spread them out for processing. If you would like to come to cut firewood between Friday and Monday, please do.

    We have at least 30 large tree trunks laid out and ready to go. Rich is still overseas for work so my dad is here helping me, but it is way too much for one man and one chain saw. We need more help.

    Processing and removing this wood will make room for the next layer to come off the log jam, so that we can make it available for more firewood for the community (hopefully next weekend), and so that we can access the 12 trees that are still standing behind the log jam and dig the sand out to save them. We lost one of our two big trees in yesterday’s overnight winds :( and I really hope we can save the others.

    Before they go home for the weekend, Bladeworks will be making a temporary ramp down from the Kiowa crossing for us so that pick-up trucks and trailers can get in to haul wood out over this weekend.

    Here are a few ground rules:

    1. Please wear proper safety equipment!
    2. Please do not cut trees with fluorescent pink paint markings- we want to save those ones to make furniture and for our own firewood.
    3. Please pile slash in designated areas, in piles no larger than 8’x8’x8′, so that we can burn it this Winter once we have a permit.

    No need to RSVP, just show up. We look forward to seeing you, and to hearing a symphony of chainsaws all weekend long.

    Thank you so much,
    Aimee Sanders and Richard Parnell
    466 Arapahoe Court

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