Hot, dry and windy conditions fanned the flames of the four fires burning across western Colorado on Friday morning.
Spring Creek Fire
The Spring Creek fire, located just south of Parachute, continued to burn overnight, officials said. Mapping of the fire Thursday showed it is burning on a nearly 3,000-acre area.
Fire officials plan to hold a community meeting 6 p.m. Friday evening in Parachute to provide information and updates.
Coalmine Fire
Firefighters in southwestern Colorado Thursday faced the Coalmine fire in Archuleta County. The fire erupted Wednesday and spread quickly, reaching 190 acres by the end of the day.
As of Thursday evening, the fire had burned across 267 acres, according to the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office.
While aircraft continue to drop water and fire retardant, ground crews are working with county equipment on the fire line to solidify the fire’s perimeter and prevent further spreading, officials said.
Chris Mountain Fire
The Chris Mountain fire, located about 12 miles west of Pagosa Springs and north of Highway 160, continued to burn overnight, authorities reported on a federal fire data website. Evacuation orders remain active in the area.
Aircraft – including a helicopter hauling water and airtanker loaded with fire retardant – were dispatched to the area Thursday afternoon, focusing on the east flank of the fire to keep it out of the drainage area, San Juan National Forest officials stated.
The fire grew Thursday, from 120 acres to 200, and began to cross through the retardant lines attempting to contain the flames, authorities wrote in their latest update.
Retardant is only effective when wet and when firefighters on the ground can reinforce the barrier, the update stated. Due to the difficult terrain in the spreading areas, firefighters Friday morning were unable to engage the fire on the ground and have temporarily pulled back on retardant efforts.
The fire is “moderately active” as of 9 a.m. and fire managers are beginning to scout ahead of the fire’s path for containment options, officials said. Helicopters will continue to drop water on the fire throughout the day to protect private properties.
Arkansas Loop Fire
Firefighters worked to contain another fire burning on Southern Ute land, identified as the Arkansas Loop fire.
The fire’s footprint only expanded one acre overnight Thursday and is currently burning on 127 acres, said Rich Gustafson, fire management officer for the Southern Ute Agency.
“The fire is difficult to fight because of the steepness of the terrain,” Southern Ute spokeswoman Summer Begay said Friday morning. “We have mostly aviation efforts dedicated to putting out the fire and ground crews working to contain the perimeter.”
Gustafson said the fire is 15% contained and not expected to grow, but that continued hot, dry and windy conditions could exacerbate the flames today. If the 100 firefighters on-scene continue to contain the fire Friday, the agency will begin to wind down the operation and slowly decrease the number of workers in the area.
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