A crew works on building the alternative exit for Crooked River Ranch in 2018. (Jefferson County)

When people evacuate because of a wildfire, it’s a special kind of rush hour. Everybody wants out. Almost everybody is leaving at the same time. And the roads are packed.

The Alder Springs Fire prompted just that sort of scene at Crooked River Ranch on Monday. 

It could have been worse.

Crooked River Ranch had essentially one road out before 2018. Residents there, public officials and the Bureau of Land Management came up with a plan to create an emergency exit route across BLM land. 

A year after they reached that agreement and more than $500,000 later, the one-mile route was built.

People use it every day. 

Sean Hartley, the fire chief for Crooked River Ranch, said it was helpful with the recent evacuation. It helped balance the traffic getting out.

“We also had resources coming in to with the firefighting efforts and were able to come in,” he told us Wednesday. “It helped balance the load out with this evacuation.”

Thank you to everyone who made the alternative exit happen.