Jaime Kostelnik
Jaime Kostelnik is a geologist in the Landslide Hazards Program in Golden, CO
Science and Products
Cameron Peak, Colorado, Fire: Flooding and Debris Flows - July 20, 2021
On Thursday, August 13, 2020, at approximately 1:45 PM MDT, the Cameron Peak fire was reported in steep, rugged terrain 15 miles southwest of Red Feather Lakes, Colorado, near Cameron Pass. The fire spread rapidly due to extreme temperatures, strong winds, and high fuel loads. The largest wildfire in Colorado history, the Cameron Peak fire burned 845 square kilometers (sq km) on the Arapaho and...
Tadpole Fire Debris Flows, New Mexico: July and September 2020
On Saturday, June 6, 2020 at approximately 1:45 PM MDT, the Tadpole wildfire ignited in the Gila National Forest, approximately 19 kilometers (km) north of Silver City, Grant County, New Mexico. The fire burned 45 square kilometers prior to containment in early July, 2020 (Inciweb). Fuels were primarily timber with grass understory, brush, and chaparral. The Brush, Bringham, and Bighorn fires in...
Woodbury Fire, Arizona Debris Flows - September 2019
On Saturday, June 8, 2019 at approximately 1:30 PM MST, the Woodbury wildfire ignited approximately 8 kilometers (km) northwest of Superior, Arizona. The 7th largest wildfire in Arizona’s recorded history, the fire burned 501 km2 prior to containment on July 15, 2019. The fire occurred within the Superstition Wilderness of the Tonto National Forest. The wilderness area extends from the...
Postfire debris-flow hazards
Wildfires can significantly alter the way water interacts with the landscape to the extent that even modest rainstorms can produce dangerous flash floods and debris flows. Recent fires in the western U.S. have impacted hundreds of thousands of acres of steep land, much of it public, making it susceptible to increased erosion and debris-flow activity. With the risk of severe wildfires continuing to...
Science and Products
Cameron Peak, Colorado, Fire: Flooding and Debris Flows - July 20, 2021
On Thursday, August 13, 2020, at approximately 1:45 PM MDT, the Cameron Peak fire was reported in steep, rugged terrain 15 miles southwest of Red Feather Lakes, Colorado, near Cameron Pass. The fire spread rapidly due to extreme temperatures, strong winds, and high fuel loads. The largest wildfire in Colorado history, the Cameron Peak fire burned 845 square kilometers (sq km) on the Arapaho and...
Tadpole Fire Debris Flows, New Mexico: July and September 2020
On Saturday, June 6, 2020 at approximately 1:45 PM MDT, the Tadpole wildfire ignited in the Gila National Forest, approximately 19 kilometers (km) north of Silver City, Grant County, New Mexico. The fire burned 45 square kilometers prior to containment in early July, 2020 (Inciweb). Fuels were primarily timber with grass understory, brush, and chaparral. The Brush, Bringham, and Bighorn fires in...
Woodbury Fire, Arizona Debris Flows - September 2019
On Saturday, June 8, 2019 at approximately 1:30 PM MST, the Woodbury wildfire ignited approximately 8 kilometers (km) northwest of Superior, Arizona. The 7th largest wildfire in Arizona’s recorded history, the fire burned 501 km2 prior to containment on July 15, 2019. The fire occurred within the Superstition Wilderness of the Tonto National Forest. The wilderness area extends from the...
Postfire debris-flow hazards
Wildfires can significantly alter the way water interacts with the landscape to the extent that even modest rainstorms can produce dangerous flash floods and debris flows. Recent fires in the western U.S. have impacted hundreds of thousands of acres of steep land, much of it public, making it susceptible to increased erosion and debris-flow activity. With the risk of severe wildfires continuing to...