Archive for Thursday, July 30, 2009
Fire Management Unit: Fire spreads to 1,330 acres near Rangely
Advertisement
A fire near Rangely had been limited Wednesday morning to "creeping and smoldering," the Northwest Colorado Fire Management Unit reported. However, afternoon winds of as fast as 30 miles per hour helped cause the fire to pick up "significantly," and grow to span about 1,330 acres of Bureau of Land Management property, according to the FMU.
The Spring Creek Fire, 18 miles southeast of Rangely, in Rio Blanco County on the east fork of Spring Creek, began on private land about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in a canyon bottom.
The cause is under investigation.
As of Wednesday evening, the fire had not been reported as contained.
It had damaged an undetermined number of power poles, and threatened a few cabins and outbuildings, oil and gas pipelines, compressor and pumping stations, a research station and additional power lines.
About 150 firefighters from Rio Blanco County, Rangely Rural Fire Protection District, the U.S. Forest Service, BLM and Colorado State Forest Service are responding to the fire.
Grass, sagebrush, piñon and juniper trees, Douglas Fir and mountain mahogany are fueling the fire, the Fire Management Unit reported.
Additional fire crews arrived Wednesday to battle the blaze, and two helicopters and three air tankers also were used.
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Post a comment (Requires free registration)
Posting comments requires a free account and verification.