Last week, it finally snowed! The snow really helped to reduce the fires. The days before it snowed, it was very windy. This caused everyone to be on the edge of their seats, hoping that the fires wouldn’t spread too much. Luckily, they didn’t. The snow blew in, and started falling. In some places, they got around or over a foot of snow. The day that it was snowing, it was very cloudy, so the planes couldn’t do much. The following days, the sky cleared. It is important to know that in order for the planes and helicopters with the water to fly, the wind speeds can’t be over 30 mph, and the skys have to be clear in order for the planes and helicopters to see where to drop the water. The following days after the initial snow, the skies cleared up and the planes and helicopters could fly. They dropped lots of water and fire retardant onto the fires, therefore theroughally reducing them in size. The wet ground also made it so that the fires couldn’t spread. Now, the firefighters are working hard to put out any spot fires that may have occurred and any hot spots that they may find. All mandatory evacuations from Estes Park have been lifted due to the snow and the work of our firefighters. Overall, the snow was super helpful to the firefighters. They have been working tirelessly to help keep everyone safe, so thank you firefighters!