Throughout the Aspen Acres Fire, firefighters and emergency officials have not been the only people working to keep the public safe.Both Certified Deaf Interpreters and ASL Interpreters have played an important role in making su re life-saving information is accessible to members of the Deaf community.During online updates about the fire, most commonly seen on the Aspen Acres Fire 2026 Facebook page, viewers may have noticed Certified Deaf Interpreter Kevin Harrer signing in the corner of the screen or alongside incident command.Harrer works to make sure the information being shared is clear and accessible to Deaf viewers, including when certain words or phrases do not translate directly into American Sign Language (ASL)."Its a very visual language employing facial expression, body language, movement, and space, as well as something called classifiers which is unique to the language," Harrer said. "It shows the space and shape of particular items. I then interpret it into a clear, accessible message for the deaf audience."Harrer says Certified Deaf Interpreters, like himself, and hearing ASL interpreters work together to make sure messages are clear. During the Aspen Acres Fire, he worked alongside Christina Witczak. She interprets the spoken English message from incident command into ASL for Harrer.Peoples live depend on this information," Witczak said. "The more and more that they have us on the screen, more people will realize that this is something that needs to happen all the time, 100% of the time.Harrer does not want translations to just look accessible, but be accessible for anyone who needs it."I hope that, in the future, people just become accustomed to having interpreters there at every press conference," Harrer said. "Ideally, having an interpreter in-person, on-camera, including them in the screen shot is key and that makes communication more inclusive."Email Senior Reporter Meghan Glova at [email protected] Meghan Glova KOAA on Facebook.____Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching. ...read more read less