In a region where outdoor thrills are plentiful, ice rescues, lost hikers and injured rock climbers are a year-round reality for the Colorado Springs Fire Department. For some firefighters, mountain rescues are just as much a part of the job as house fires and car crashes. They have arsenal of tools for the job, including a half dozen off-road motorcycles.
“It’s just one of the tools in our toolbox in being an all-risk department,” said Colorado Springs Fire Department spokesman Capt. Steven Oswald. “Probably the majority of metro departments our size don’t have motorcycles.”
Firefighters are trained to ride the motorcycles through rocky ravines, up steep, gravelly trails and on winding mountain roads. The bikes are used when quick response to a remote location within city limits is required – often for fire spotting or locating a lost or injured hiker.
The program started in 2001, when the department received a few motorcycles from the Colorado Springs Police Department, which had scaled back its now defunct park police program.
The department typically has about eight trained riders available on any given day to man its four Yamaha XT250s and two Yamaha WR250s.
Firefighters receive several months of training for the program, said Fire Station 13 Capt. Don Hawley.
The training is what makes the department an “all-risk” unit. Firefighters are capable of responding to any type of fire, EMS, rescue, hazardous materials, or wildland fire call, and each station has its own specialty. Station 9 specializes in fighting wildland fires, Station 14 houses the HAZMAT team, and Station 17 specializes in heavy rescue. The department’s motorcycle program runs out of stations 5 and 13, which both specialize in high-angle rescues. Station 5, located near Red Rock Canyon Open Space and Station 13, located near Garden of the Gods, are minutes away from two of the city’s most popular hiking destinations.
Firefighters at the stations often respond to calls from people who have suffered injuries from a fall, who are stuck a top one of the towering rocks in Garden of the Gods, trapped on the face of a cliff in Cheyenne Cañon or simply lost, often in bad weather or long after the sun has set.
Between May and October 2013 – peak hiking season – 12 rescues specifically called for the motorcycles, Oswald said. In one instance, firefighters jumped on the bikes to sweep the banks of Monument Creek for a possible drowning victim. ”Instead of us walking, covering about 3 miles an hour, we can cover 10-12 miles an hour on a dirt bike,” firefighter, EMT Ralf Hoehne said.
The ability respond quickly is important because riders have a limited amount of gear they can carry – a pack of medical supplies secured around their waists and a backpack with personal survival equipment – and they cannot transport patients. The rest of the crew follows behind, often on foot, with ropes, technical rescue gear and additional supplies.
The bikes are an increasingly important tool for the department, especially as options for outdoor recreation continue to expand, Hawley said. The recent but brief opening of trails on Pikes Peak’s Southern Slope has the department evaluating how to prepare for the possibility of future rescues there, he said.
“As the amount of open spaces and trail systems increase within city limits, unless other provisions have been made, the Colorado Springs Fire Department will respond to those calls,” he said.
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Contact Lisa Walton: 476-1623
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Off-road motorcycle unit lets Colorado Springs Fire Department respond to any emergency
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