Colorado Springs-area emergency planners prepare for upcoming strong wind event
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Authorities say that they don't expect winds to be as strong in and around the city as they likely will be near Trinidad and Walsenburg, which often gets hit hardest in such conditions.
But the Pikes Peak Regional Office of Emergency Management is preparing for anything.
"We've been meeting since 7 a.m. and probably will continue meeting throughout the day," says director Jim Reid. "Just when you think you've seen it all, you find that you haven't. So we want to be prepared for whatever happens."
Reid says that he expects to receive numerous calls to report fallen trees and downed power lines, and that people should stay away from them.
"We might even see some vehicles blown over," he says. "In a high-profile vehicle, it takes only 30 mph to 40 mph winds to do that."
Reid says that his office is coordinating with officials in the city and in El Paso County, as well as the Colorado Department of Transportation and Colorado Springs Utilities to prepare for the wind event.
"My advice to citizens is to make sure everything that could blow away is brought indoors or tied down securely," he says. "That includes trash cans, lawn furniture, even Christmas lights. In a wind storm, those things can often cause wrecks because of drivers trying to avoid them. We're starting to see more trampolines blown around."
He also says that you can report damage by calling 211, or by using the GoCos! smartphone app.
Bern Krueger was on the roof of his home along Cascade Avenue Tuesday, ensuring that he installed his Christmas lights securely.
"My wife would have liked to have it done a week ago, but I wasn't here," he explains. "Then, I waited for the inch of snow to melt off the roof. So I'm up here before the winds get here. I lost three large trees from my yard in the windstorm a year ago."
Just a few houses down the street, Krueger's neighbor, Kate Meyer Olson, says that she replaced her fence after a neighbor's tree fell on it in that same storm.
"I'm more worried about the city's trees because botanically, the seven that you can see right here are dead, and we get branches down every time there's a blow, and they smash my fence or block traffic in the street," she says.
Olson also spent Tuesday afternoon raking leaves in her yard, before the windstorm scatters them.
"I've already had some wind damage," she says. "A few nights ago, a gust of wind blew off part of the covering of my air conditioning conduit. I never really get used to these windstorms. Each one is different."
