Eagle County, Colorado Pics

[firedude 985]

I departed JFK at 5pm. Here is my Plane...

We landed at the Eagle County Regional Airport in Eagle, Colorado at 8pm local time.

Beaver Creek has a fleet of snowmobiles. They have initials showing whose uses them. For example, "SM" is for snow making and "SP" is for ski patrol all of them are fitted with LED emergency lights and a siren. Beaver Creek Ski Patrol has one dispatch center and 4 outpost scattered around the mountain. They cover all 1815 acres of the Beaver Creek Ski Area. In the event a skier needs medical attention, the Beaver Creek Medical Center, can treat some injury’s. Major injuries call for an County ALS Ambulance, run by the Eagle County Ambulance District, to respond and Transfer the patient to Vail Valley Medical Center in Vail, Colorado. Here is one of Beaver Creek Ski Patrol's snowmobiles.

The Beaver Creek Metropolitan District is protected by Beaver Creek Public Safety. They respond to all EMS, Police and Fire Calls on the mountain. I do not know what kind of training they have but I do know that they are all EMTs. They are always first on scene to any emergency of 911 call. All they carry is a radio, so I assume they do not have arresting powers. So, if Law enforcement is needed, they would call upon the Avon Police Department or the Eagle County Sheriff’s Department. The public safety officers patrol in Toyota Pickups and Toyota SUVs. I have seen the light bars with red lights so they must be "emergency vehicles". They also have an old tow truck.

Here is one of their officers hiding behind a pole. I do not know why they have two radios. The whole resort is on a trunked system.

The Beaver Creek uses a Unimog to plow snow. I did not ever think I would see one of these in the United States, but it makes sense here. Here is some of the Beaver Creek Metro District's plows...

The Beaver Creek Metro District and the surrounding area is protected by the Eagle River Fire Protection District (ERFPD). They have 6 fire stations that cover an area of about 240 square miles, including one of America's deadliest roads, I-70's Vail Pass. ERFPD is a paid fire department with 60 full-time firefighters and 21 resident-intern firefighters. I believe they have around 20 Apparatus including 9 engines, 2 tower ladders and 5 brush units. They respond to all EMS calls too. I tried to contact someone at the station but my emails were not returned. So I had to settle for some outside shots of station 11, at Beaver Creek.

I decided to spend an afternoon in Vail. Only a 20 minute ride for Beaver Creek. The Vail Fire Department only has one station, located in the center of downtown. They have 1 Tower Ladder, 2 Engines, 1 Brush Unit and some support trucks. I believe all of their apparatus are 4x4. They are in the process of building another station to support the demand for calls on the Westside of town. The West Vail Fire station is scheduled to be completed this fall. Here are some pictures from outside their HQ...

Edited December 24, 2010 by firedude

[firedude 985]

The Vail Police Department followed the Aspen Police Department when they switched their main patrol vehicle to Volvo 4x4 SUVs. I was really on the lookout for one. But, I could not find any in town. I stopped by the police station to look but found that all police vehicles were kept in an underground heated garage. Instead I found some other interesting police vehicles. The Vail Police Department does a lot more then you would think, they have a volunteer program were residents help out the police force in certain events. They also do code enforcement and animal control. All these divisions drive White Chevy Colorados with "Vail Police" on the side.

Here is one of their old Ford Explorers.

Here is one of Vail Shuttle busses at the Vail Transportation Center (VTC)

The Brand New, Four Seasons Vail!

Town of Vail Snow Plows

Eagle County has two EMS Providers, The Western Eagle County Ambulance District and the Eagle County Ambulance District, both are paid. The Western Eagle County Ambulance District covers the west part of the county including the towns of Eagle and Gypsum and the eastern part of Garfield County. The Eagle County Ambulance District (ECAD) covers the County Airport and the western parts of the county, including the ski resorts. According to their website, ECAD has 3 stations, 8 ambulances and 4 staff paramedic supervisor vehicles. They have 53 employees that cover 770 square miles. Here is some of their fleet. Interesting Colors.

Here is one of their ambulances, sorry for the fence. This was taken last year with a different camera.

Here are some sights around Vail, home of the 1980, 1999 and 2015 Skiing Championships.

Missing Hydrants are not a problem when you have heated sidewalks and roads.

And here is Beaver Creek Mountain...

If you have $3-5 Million to spare, you can own one of those slope side Duplexes or Condos

[firedude 985]

I really want one of these snow cats now, but they cost around $350,000!!! These too are equipped with sirens and PA.

Finally, It was time to head home. EGE-JFK on American Airlines. The Eagle County Airport is Awesome. Only Airport I know that has FREE PARKING! It is also one of the only aiports to still have a online live webcam

This airport is also interesting because the FAA does not own the Air Traffic Control Tower. It is owned by the county and air traffic control services are contracted out to a private company

Fire Apparatus Journal had an article about this airport ARFF Department a couple of months ago. Here is the Airport OPS building. The 3 bays on the right hold their 3 ARFF rigs. The White truck in front is the ARFF Supervisor. The window was dirty, so the image didn't come out so good.

My plane...

Inflight...

And finally back to New York.

So, I’d like to hear what you think about my photos or how the county emergency system runs. I do not have access to a photo editing software, so I couldn’t edit really edit them. All of the photos I tool can be seen on my flickr page, there is a link bellow. I am welcome to hear any constructive criticism and or thoughts you have.

Edited December 24, 2010 by firedude

[JetPhoto 626]

Thanks for taking us on vacation with you

[Tanker 10eng 140]

Great pictures,thanks for making us hate staying in NY...

[firedude 985]

sorry guys. Thank you for the comments. Edited December 24, 2010 by firedude

[Alpinerunner 61]

I can cross Vail off my to do list now.

[99subi 121]

How do they heat the streets? geothermal?

[firedude 985]

How do they heat the streets? geothermal?

Little poly tubes run up and down the streets with heated water. They are about 1 inch below the street. The water is only heated a couple degrees. As long as the road is above 32, noting will stick. The water is heated with large heating units. I think they use recycled water that came of the mountain.

Edited December 25, 2010 by firedude

[Portsmouth OH Fire Buff 8]

Heated sidewalks and streets, what a luxury! Great Photos!!

[Westfield12 65]

Vail looks very picturesque and beautiful; and they probably get more snow in 1 month then we get in 1 winter, but the winter of 2010-2011 (Winter Storm Benedict provided most of the snow and it was a record-breaking storm) might be a little close

Edited July 18, 2011 by Westfield12

[x635 4,066]

Awesome shots as always! You keep topping yourself!

[firedude 985]

Awesome shots as always! You keep topping yourself!

haha, thanks Seth!