BLACK HAWK - On Wednesday, March 26, 2025, the Black Hawk City Council decided to withdraw from the mutual aid agreement between its fire department and that of Central City, citing imbalance in resources and uncertainty in reciprocation.

The meeting was well attended and several of the audience members were Timberline officials, including Timberline Board President Rick Wenzel. 

Black Hawk Chief of Police Michelle Moriarty and Black Hawk Fire Chief Christopher Woolley presented summaries to the Council of the recent fire events in Central.

The hour-long presentation showed body cam footage of the officers who responded to the Gold Mountain Village fire on February 12, 2025, as well as drone footage from the recent Hawley building fire on March 16.

The body cam footage showed billowing smoke in the open air breezeways between the apartment buildings as the officers went door to door clearing the building of inhabitants. The officers suffered smoke inhalation but have since recovered. 

Moriarty praised her officers’ behavior on scene as they checked to ensure all residents had evacuated the building on fire.

Woolley shared, "The interesting thing about this was that this call was actually received by the Gilpin County Dispatch Center from an alarm company stating it was a general fire alarm.

At that time, we did not know, or nobody knew, that it was actually a working structure fire.”

Black Hawk police self-dispatched, arriving in just over three minutes. Upon finding the bedroom on fire, the officers made the tough decision to wait for the proper fire response to attempt rescue of the individual in the bedroom. 

Training sessions for Black Hawk Police and Gilpin County Sheriff's Office have been conducted over the years to prepare incident commands for active threats such as this one.

Moriarty said Black Hawk will retain its mutual aid agreement with Gilpin County, confirming it to be beneficial and reciprocal. 

Woolley reported that it took a little over four minutes for Black Hawk fire to arrive, and by the time Clear Creek arrived, requested first by Central City, the event was basically over.

“At no time did Central City request mutual aid from the next closest department?” asked Mayor David Spellman. The chiefs confirmed this. 

When Central did show up with a fire truck, only one person was attending it, the Chiefs said.

Alderman Hal Midcap asked why it took ten minutes for Central to request mutual aid from Clear Creek. Woolley said he asked the same question but has yet to receive a response from Central City Fire Chief Gary Allen. 

Then the presentation turned to the Hawley fire footage. Drone footage showed the building fully engulfed in flames.

Woolley also shared some striking infrared footage, showing where a rafter, not yet on fire, indicated excessive heat. The infrared ability can help fire crews determine what structures are unstable.

Woolley said six members of Central City’s mainly volunteer organization arrived on scene to combat the Hawley fire, in addition to Clear Creek and Black Hawk.

Woolley then discussed the nature of a mutual aid agreement, saying that, “In this case, I feel it's safe to say that we're currently subsidizing fire protection to Central City.”

Spellman asked, “When was the last time we actually received mutual aid from the City of Central?”

Woolley replied that the last time mutual aid was requested and received was in 2019.

Spellman asked where the weak link, or gap, is in mutual aid in the region. Woolley said it lies with Central City, citing staffing shortages, lack of resources, and uncertain training and certification qualifications.

Spellman said, “And frankly I guess at this point I would say that Central City needs to be put on notice that the current agreement that we have with mutual aid is no longer workable or sustainable, and it's said we should now enter into, at a minimum, discussions with Timberline to enter into an IGA for fire protection, or even better, yeah, perhaps an inclusion into the Timberline Fire Protection Initiative.”

Hence why much of the Timberline staff was present. 

“So, I had told Rick Wenzel before the meeting that if anyone from Timberline wanted to speak today, they could. I'm not putting them on the spot, but I hope we didn't put words in Timberline's mouth. But, Rick, do you want to address the board at all?” said Spellman.

Wenzel replied, “No, I'd say at this time, I don't think it's appropriate for Timberline to make any comments. 

“We just kind of came here to observe. We do appreciate our mutual aid agreements with all our response partners; you know, we're a firm believer in those agreements.

“But at this time, our board hasn't had a chance to discuss any sort of agreements other than what we already have.”

Spellman asked for a motion to give notice to Central of Black Hawk’s withdrawal of mutual aid.

Unfortunately for Central City, the Council was unanimously in favor. They clarified that this does not mean that they will NOT respond to fires in Central. Alderman Benito Torres said they understand that the lives of the people in Central are precious, but they cannot count on Central for help.

City Manager Corey Hoffman said Black Hawk does have the authorization to charge Central for their services, and avoid subsidizing the cost. Spellman called for serious, future discussion on that cost. 

With no public hearings, action items, or additional reports, the meeting concluded at 4:10 p.m.

The next Black Hawk City Council meeting is scheduled for April 9, 2025, at 211 Church Street.