Evacuations ordered for ’24 Fire’ in Fremont County

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UPDATE - Monday, March 23, 9:54 a.m. Per Fort Carson officals, “Sunday evening, fire crews were successfully able to tie in all control lines, boxing in the fire. As of this morning, control lines remain strong. Due to a combination of backburn operations and fire activity, the 24 Fire along Highway 115 now stands at approximately 7,385 acres and 0% containment. Backburning is a technique in which crews deliberately set fires along firebreaks in order to reduce potential fuel for the wildfire, slowing or preventing the spread of flames.

Smoke will continue to be visible in the area as crews work to contain the fire. Highway 115 is expected to remain closed at least through Friday, but will be reevaluated daily.

We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.”

• UPDATE - SUNDAY, MARCH 22, 7:06 p.m.: The Fremont County Sheriff's office has redefined a more specific acreage of the '24 Fire' at 4,605 acres. The sheriff's office is sharing the image below via Fort Carson, illustrating an overhead view of how big the wildfire is. For those in the region, the sheriff's office says large amounts of smoke will remain visible as fire response operations continue. The evacuation and pre-evacuation orders remain in place.

• UPDATE - SUNDAY, MARCH 22, 11:00 a.m.: The Fremont County Sheriff's Office says the fire has grown to 4,600 acres. No update on containment and no changes to evacuation orders.

• UPDATE - SATURDAY, MARCH 21, 6:38 p.m.: The Fremont County Sheriff's Office says the fire has grown to 1,923 acres, still at 0% containment. The fire has not jumped CO Hwy 115. The El Paso County Sheriff's Office issued a pre-evacuation notice this afternoon for Hwy 115/Sandy Creek Ranch HTS.FCSO says, "Unless something drastically changes, there will not be another update till tomorrow morning."

• UPDATE - SATURDAY, MARCH 21, 4:23 p.m.: Per Fort Carson officials, “High winds and hot, dry temperatures have increased the fire’s activity, with the fire now standing at approximately 1,126 acres and 0% containment. There are currently 125 firefighters from local, state, and federal partners on the ground supporting response efforts. We will provide updates as more information becomes available.”

Original reporting:

FREMONT COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- Evacuations have been ordered for the "24 Fire" burning east of HWY 115 on Ft Carson land, which is now approximately 1,067 acres with zero percent containment, according to officials.

According to officials, a 2-mile evacuation order has been issued for areas around County Road F45 and State Highway 115. A 3-mile pre-evacuation notice has also been issued for the surrounding area. Residents, pets, and livestock can evacuate to Pathfinder Park, says officials.

The Fremont County Sheriff's Office is going door to door and asks that if you evacuate before deputies make it to your residence, leave a note on the door with your name and that you evacuated.

For more information on evacuations, call 719-276-7421.

Fort Carson held a press conference on March 20, during which it confirmed that six agencies are working on the fire. Fort Carson says there are 120 first responders working and two C-130s.

Ft. Carson says crews worked overnight to contain the fire along the southwest side, preventing the fire from spreading across the highway into Fremont County. Air support and ground crews resumed additional efforts this morning. Highway 115 is closed with no estimate on reopening between mile markers 22 and 28.

Increasing wind and rising temperatures are expected today, officials say, and smoke will continue to be visible.

The fire broke out on Wednesday, March 18, around 10 a.m. and is believed to be human-caused. Crews initially achieved 50% containment and estimated the size to be 67 acres on Thursday morning.

By Thursday afternoon, smoke plumes were seen from across Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and even Teller County, prompting alerts from several fire departments, and the fire jumped to over 600 acres within a matter of hours.

So far, no injuries or structural damage have been reported.

Several other fires have burned this week, including a 60-acre grass fire in Calhan and a fire in Custer County that prompted evacuations; both have since been contained, and evacuations have been lifted.

This year, Colorado is experiencing its warmest start to a water year in 130 years, combined with one of the driest periods on record, according to officials. Colorado Springs Utilities is even urging residents to conserve water.

KRDO13 will have live updates in our shows and online throughout the day. This is a developing story and may be updated.

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