Grass Fire 100 Percent Contained
EL PASO COUNTY – Fire crews now say a grass fire that broke out Wednesday near Meridian Road and Highway 24 is 100 percent contained. In addition, Falcon, and Highway 24 has been re-opened to traffic.
The El Paso County Sheriff’s Officeestimated the fire at 175 acres. Itdestroyed one barn, two outbuildings and two animals pensin the area of Highway 24 & Meridian Road. No homes were burned, nor were there any injuries to firefighters or animals in the area. Earlier in the day, smoke made for tough visibility, and Highway 24 was closed between Falcon Hwy and Constitution to allow fire crews freer access.
The fire sparked at a Tri-State generation and transmission power substation near Dodge and Garrett Road around 11:30 Wednesday morning. The first crews arrived just five minutes later, but strong Northerly wind gusts allowed the fire to hop the road, spreading into the Meridian road area. A power outage affected about 3,000 customers. Crews had power restored around 12:30 PM.
Crews from seven different agencies remain on scene at this hour, watching hot-spots and aiding in the fire clean-up.
NEWSCHANNEL 13 would like to thank viewer Amanda Gonzales for sending us the picture yousee with this story.
The Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office and the Colorado Springs Fire Departments are warning area residents to be careful with fire on Wednesday.
The second day in a row with Red Flag Warnings has firefighters concerned. A small fire in Pueblo County Tuesday night has highlighted the danger, according to information from the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office:
A late night brush fire along Interstate-25 near mile marker 83 is a small reminder of how critical it is to pay attention to weather service warnings on Red Flag Days. A Red Flag Warning means that conditions are perfectly suited for fire. Dry air, warm temperatures, and strong winds not only mean ripe conditions, but combine to make controlling fire on those warning days a real challenge for fire fighters.
Citizens are encouraged to stay vigilante throughout the Spring and Summer, but especially during the Red Flag Warning Days. Fully extinguish cigarettes and never throw them from your car window. Use caution when working with any flame out of doors. In addition, campfires can easily get out of control, so if you have one in an authorized area, don’t leave it unattended and use plenty of water to extinguish it. Pueblo County residents are also prohibited from yard debris controlled burns on these days.
“The keys to getting a brush fire under control, particularly those that begin under a Red Flag, are quick response and suppression efforts. The fire last night was contained to roughly 10 acres because of the rapid suppression efforts of citizens that were in the area. Our volunteers were able to get it completely knocked down within a couple hours but fire spreads faster and risk to fire fighters is greater under a Red Flag Warning.” says Emergency Services Bureau Chief Mark Mears.
There were no injuries or structure damage from the fire. The cause of the fire was a wind-downed power-line.
