MORRISON, COLO. -- As wildfires continue to grow in Colorado, local agencies are sending more resources to help with the 416 Fire.
West Metro Fire Protection District deployed its Rapid Extraction Module Support (REMS) team for the first time with four crew members on Sunday morning. This team will join five other West Metro firefighters and a brush crew currently in Durango.
Rather than fighting the fire, The REMS team will be responsible for treating injuries and performing rescues.
"What they will do is they will take a couple of vehicles with four people that are really good at low angle and high angle rescue. They will go to the incident and be ready for that injured firefighter in a tough spot and then use their technical rescue skills to extract that person,” said Gary Armstrong, West Metro Division Chief.
The West Metro REMS team is the newest of three in the five-state Rocky Mountain region. The other two groups are in Greeley and Rapid City, South Dakota.
The REMS crew members will be assigned on the 416 Fire for two weeks, but their time there could be shorter or longer depending on the fire activity and weather.
