800+ acres burning in Northern Colorado wildfire

Fueled by high winds,a fire burning near Fort Collins has rapidly grown to about 800 acres and forced hundreds of homes to be evacuated.

The Soldier Canyon fire is burning near Lory State Park and Fort Collins.

It started just before noon on Friday and quickly spread.

About 300 homes were evacuated Friday afternoon, and dozens more put on standby. Some people are being allowed back to their homes to retrieve pets and other belongings, but aren’t allowed to stay.

Initial reports are that the fire started from a slash burn, but that has not been confirmed.

Units from six agencies are battling the fire. There is no containment.