Two wildfires are currently active on Colorado’s Western Slope, leading to evacuation orders and disaster declarations.
Colorado Governor Jared Polis has declared a disaster emergency for the Elk fire in Rio Blanco County, southeast of Meeker. The lightning-sparked wildfire began on Saturday afternoon and has already spread to approximately 600 acres by Sunday afternoon, according to the Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s Office.
Evacuation orders have been issued on both sides of County Road 8 between mile markers 11 and 16 as the fire burns through a mix of private, Bureau of Land Management, and state-owned land. Fire crews are actively working to suppress the fire, which is visible due to the hot and dry conditions.
Meanwhile, another wildfire near Carbondale in Garfield County has also forced evacuations across the community. The Ranch at Coulter Creek fire started near a subdivision of the same name on Sunday morning, north of Panorama Drive, as reported by the Carbondale & Rural Fire Protection District.
Mandatory evacuation orders were in place for the Panorama subdivision, the Ranch at Coulter Creek, and areas east of County Road 100 to Upper Cattle Creek Road, but were lifted later in the day. The fire had burned approximately 115 acres with no containment by late afternoon.
These new wildfires add to the challenges faced by firefighters already battling three major fires in the region. The Wright Draw, Turner Gulch, and South Rim fires have collectively burned 26,381 acres, while the recently contained Sowbelly fire consumed another 2,274 acres in western Colorado.
This is an ongoing situation and updates may follow.
