NEDERLAND — The Nederland Fire Protection District (NFPD) Board of Directors met on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, to discuss the potential of assessing staff salaries in an effort to improve recruitment.

But first, the Board reviewed monthly reports which detailed the rise in motor vehicle accidents and illegal campfires in the area as the summer rages on. 

NFPD Chief Charlie Schmidtmann said District firefighters and medical personnel have responded to 54 calls since mid-June, with 11 calls being for illegal campfires, and five reports of smoke in the area. 

Medical personnel assisted patients suffering breathing difficulties in Old Town, responded to a patient suffering a drug overdose in Big Springs, helped a patient afflicted with abdominal pain in Eldora, and tended to a patient who walked into the fire station suffering a cardiac emergency. 

Firefighters responded to a call of a lost group of hikers heading towards Rainbow Lakes, repaired a large gas line that had been damaged on Blue Spruce Road, and assisted with a motorcycle crash that occurred downtown. 

On the day of the NFPD’s monthly meeting, at 6:30 p.m. NFPD personnel responded to a motor vehicle collision on Boulder Canyon Drive. Brake failure on a Dodge Ram pickup truck that was towing a trailer caused the out-of-control vehicle to hit a vehicle in the westbound lane and another in the eastbound lane. The incident closed the highway down overnight, and it was not reopened again until 4:15 a.m.

The driver of the Ram was found uninjured; one of the crash victims—a 22-year old from Ward—was transported to the hospital, where his injuries were treated. The second victim was pronounced dead at the scene and was later identified by the Boulder County Coroner’s office as 37-year old Kristina Davis of Nederland. 

District staff and volunteers also assisted Timberline Fire Protection District (TFPD) on two calls, including tending to a victim suffering from a dog bite, and helping a patient who was reportedly “sick and confused.” NFPD personnel and Boulder County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) collaborated as well on a call involving a violent individual at the West Magnolia campsite.  

In addition to the 11 illegal campfires that NFPD firefighters had responded to, a massive storm that occurred on July 10 resulted in approximately 109 lightning strikes within the District, one of which struck a tree and started a fire at 1001 Caribou Road—“260 feet off Caribou Road on a remote slope exceeding 60% grade,” according to Fire Marshal Andrew Joslin’s investigation. 

The fire prompted a quick response from the NFPD, TFPD, U.S. Forest Service, and BCSO, and was extinguished expeditiously. 

“We were really fortunate that we had the rain when we did because it could have turned very different very quickly,” Chief Schmidtmann noted.

Schmidtmann also reported on the deployments of some members of his team to other parts of Colorado, including a 14-day assignment to assist with the Gold Mountain Fire in Ouray, and a three-day assignment—coordinated by the Colorado Mutual Aid System—that turned into a 14-day assignment, assisting on the tragic Aspen Acres Fire outside of Pueblo. 

As of the reporting of this article, the NFPD crew will have completed their assignment and will be heading home to Nederland. 

District Administrator Sherry Snyder reported that the billing period for 2026 deployments has begun, and noted that the District is currently owed $123,082.61, “with $54,579.30 in equipment in wildfire billing.” That amount is expected to increase after July 20 with the return of its crews and equipment from deployment. 

Schmidtmann’s monthly report noted he was revisiting staff salaries in order to determine whether there was a significant enough gap in comparison to other Districts to explain the recent lull in recruitment, particularly for the currently open Fire Captain position.  

The District has been advertising for this position since May, and has since reposted the opening and even extended the application period through to July 18 in an effort to attract more hopefuls. 

Though several interviews were conducted last month, only one applicant made it through to the next level, a one-on-one interview with Chief Schmidtmann and a ride along with an on-duty Captain. Unfortunately, that applicant was unable to make his interview as a result of a car accident and has not since rescheduled. 

Schmidtmann reiterated to the Board the importance of a full staff for the NFPD, as some recent departures have left the District with a need for more experienced Fire Captains with the knowledge and certifications required to fill out the wildland operations team.

The Board of Directors agreed wholeheartedly that wildland operations were integral to the safety of the District and of the community, and understood that a review of their finances was in order, though they were concerned that any budgetary shifts could affect their ongoing equipment replacement plans, or could result in the need for another mill levy increase.   

As Schmidtmann quoted some salaries at neighboring fire districts, including Windsor and Arvada—some of which ranged from $7,000 to nearly $30,000 higher than what Nederland was offering—the discussion became about who the NFPD should be comparing themselves to, and about what other factors could be contributing to a lack of recruitment. 

It was noted that, regardless of the size difference when compared to other Districts, the NFPD should still offer competitive salaries, not just to bolster engagement and staff retention, but also to compensate for the greater amount of services the NFPD delivers.  

“We require a lot more certifications,” one Board member said, in relation to what is asked of applicants for the Fire Captain position.

“Yeah, we do,” Chief Schmidtmann responded, explaining how Nederland’s unique position atop a state highway, and its immediate adjacency to a ski area and to mass wildland, requires more from its first responders. “We’re in the mountains and they have to be able to work on their own; they have to be able to do these things.” 

A formal review of NFPD staff salaries and of the potential impact that salary increases may have on the District’s budget will be conducted by Chief Schmidtmann, Administrator Snyder, and the Board of Directors over the next month. 

The Nederland Fire Protection District Board of Directors meets on the third Wednesday of every month. Meetings can be attended online via Microsoft Teams. Their next meeting will be on Wednesday, August 19, at 7 p.m. 

For more information, go to nfpd.org.