Drought, fires curb festivities in West
One of largest blazes in Colorado history continues to grow
DENVER — Large wildfires grew across the American West on Wednesday, keeping thousands of people out of their homes for the July Fourth holiday and forcing some strict bans on fireworks to prevent new fires from igniting in the hot, dry region.
The National Interagency Fire Center on Wednesday reported more than 60 large, active blazes across the country, most in the drought-stricken West where holiday festivities could lead to increased fire danger.
One of the largest recorded fires in Colorado history kept expanding, chewing through 147 square miles near Fort Garland, about 205 miles southwest of Denver.
The Spring Fire has destroyed more than 100 homes, and officials said preventing the flames from spreading toward the small mountain town of Cuchara is a priority.
Nearly 1,000 firefighters were working to gain control of the fire in unpredictable winds, but it was only slightly contained since sparking June 27.
Some fireworks displays were scheduled to go on in Denver and other large cities, but several mountain communities called off their festivities to avoid any risk of flames.
Parts of Colorado and other Western states have been grappling with severe drought that’s made wildfires explosive so far this season.
Utah authorities ordered more residents to evacuate as a blaze grew to about 62 square miles near a popular fishing reservoir amid high wind gusts, steep terrain and dry conditions.
The fire roughly two hours southeast of Salt Lake City has destroyed about 30 structures. Officials in Utah closed a portion of Strawberry Reservoir so planes could scoop water and drop it onto the flames, but people could still boat and fish on other parts of the water Wednesday.
In Northern California, officials reported some progress against a wildfire threatening hundreds of buildings but cautioned that wind and dry conditions could keep fueling the flames.
Officials said the fire that’s scorched 129 square miles in a rural area northwest of Sacramento was slightly more contained than the previous day.
Weather could help Wednesday, which was expected to be the coolest day of the week, fire spokesman Israel Pinzon said. Temperatures were forecast to be 10 to 15 degrees lower than the triple digits that firefighters have faced.
Roughly 2,500 people had been forced from their homes. Pinzon said officials lifted some mandatory evacuations Tuesday night, though he didn’t know how many people were allowed to return home.