Wildfire destroys 100 Colorado homes
Utah, California blazes spur evacuation orders
DENVER — More than 100 homes in the Colorado mountains were destroyed by a growing wildfire, while residents of hundreds of others across the parched West remained under evacuation orders Tuesday and the closure of recreation areas derailed holiday plans.
Authorities said late Monday that a fire near Fort Garland, about 205 miles southwest of Denver, had destroyed 104 homes in a mountain housing development. The damage toll could rise.
The blaze, labeled the Spring Fire, is one of six large wildfires burning in Colorado and the largest at 123 square miles. While investigators believe it was started by a spark from a fire pit, other fires, like one that began burning in wilderness near Fairplay, were started by lightning.
Nearly 60 large, active blazes are burning across the West, including nine in New Mexico and six each in Utah and California, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
In Utah, authorities have evacuated 200 to 300 homes because of a growing wildfire near a popular fishing reservoir southeast of Salt Lake City amid high temperatures and strong winds. Several structures have been lost since the fire started Sunday; it’s unclear how many, said Jason Curry of the Utah Division of Forest, Fire and State Lands.
In Northern California, thousands of firefighters struggled to contain a massive wildfire in a sparsely populated area that has grown by 1,000 acres an hour in gusty winds. The blaze northwest of Sacramento covers 113 square miles and is burning largely out of control.
About 300 people have been ordered to flee, and more than 900 buildings are threatened.
This year, wildfires have burned
2.7 million acres in the United
States, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. That’s a bit below last year’s acreage to date — which included the beginning of California’s devastating fire season — but above the 10-year average of 2.3 million acres.
Because of the Independence Day holiday, authorities are concerned about campfires or fireworks starting fires because of the dry, hot conditions. In Colorado and Arizona, many communities have canceled firework displays.