Officials for the city of Colorado Springs released their first public critique today of their response to the Waldo Canyon Fire.

The city said that they needed to have been better communication between agencies, better evacuation policies and more training for the volunteers.

The city’s strengths were also stated, listing the city’s communication with public safety agencies, the dedicated people who helped with safety efforts during the fire, and the planning that went into some of the community education programs about wildfires.

Among the points that city officials recommended working on, they cited documentation as a key aspect that was not executed properly.

City officials say that documenting every incident became an overwhelming task, and that they need to train existing staff and public safety volunteers to work as “scribes” throughout the various incidents so it did not become so overwhelming.

City officials also say that the current public information warning that was meant to notify people of the evacuation, was not completely up to par. They say they are working on an in depth study to determine the capacity and limitations of the current system.

The fire started on June 23rd, and burned 18,247 acres. It destroyed over 345 homes and killed two people. There will be a meeting to discuss the report today at 11am.