Spring Fire in Colorado grows to over 107,000 acres; 77% contained
UPDATE on July 10: The Spring Fire is 77 percent contained and has burned 107,967 acres.
Structure protection specialists continue to patrol Tres Valles, Navajo Ranch and other repopulated areas. Specialists work to secure homes west of County Road 572.
County Road 520 remains closed due to fire activity.
Officials said at about 12:30 p.m. that residents of Middle Creek, Sulphur Springs, Old La Veta Pass, and homes along the south side of Hwy 160 will be able to re-enter the area Tuesday.
9:48 a.m. UPDATE on July 9: The Spring Fire has grown to 107,627 acres and is 70 percent contained.
Crews are beginning to focus on fire suppression activities and removing or relocating unneeded equipment. Utility companies are working to repair infrastructure within the impacted areas.
Conditions continue to be hot and dry. There is a potential for spotting in these conditions.
7:04 p.m. UPDATE on July 7: The Spring Fire is now 55 percent contained.
4:21 p.m. UPDATE on July 7: Highway 160 reopened once again. The San Luis Valley Emergency says smoke and flames may be visible along the Highway, and to use caution. They also warned conditions may change again.
4:00 p.m. UPDATE on July 7: There will be a community meeting Saturday evening at La Veta High School, 126 East Garland St., La Veta, CO 81055 at 6:00 p.m.
2:44 p.m. UPDATE on July 7: HWY 160: Road closed between CO 159 (Fort Garland) and CO 12 (1m E of La Veta). Road has been closed again due to wildfire.
2:17 p.m. UPDATE on July 7: Highway 160 has reopened in both directions.
UPDATE July 7: The Spring Fire has grown to 106,985 acres and is 43 percent contained. La Veta Pass road U.S. 160 will open both directions later today.
UPDATE July 6:The Spring Fire has grown to 105,704 acres and is 35 percent contained.
Mandatory evacuations for the following areas have been lifted:
Navajo areas :
Vega Dr. Indian Creek Drive
Areas outside of La Veta:
Wahatoya Valley Shangra La Little Kansas County road 363 also known as the Mesa County Road 362.1 County Road 361 County Road 440 County Road 450 County Road 451 County Road 430 County Road 420 Indian Creek Ranch Up to and including gas plant property.
Residents of the listed areas can return home beginning at 10 a.m. on Friday.
UPDATE July 5: The Spring Fire has grown to 103,657 acres, according to the latest overnight infrared analysis by fire staff Thursday, but progress has been made in containment.
During a meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday, officials said the SpringFire was up to 35 percent containment.
“We’re putting more black on the map,” one official said.
So far, 119 homes have been damaged and 132 homes have been destroyed. (Scroll down for an interactive evacuation map)
The Huerfano County Disaster Assistance Center continues to be open daily from 10 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. at La Veta High School.
For residents returning home, you can get your rapid tag re-entry identification card at the following locations from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.:
The Huerfano County Disaster Assistance Center,
La Veta Junior-Senior High School,126 E Garland St. La Veta Evacuee Shelter at Huerfano County Community Center
928 Russel Street, Walsenburg The Upper Huerfano Fire Protection District
25396 CO HWY 69, Gardner
Additional information for victims’ resources can be found by clicking HERE.
July 4:
The Spring Fire, which started a week ago Wednesday in Costilla County, has burned more than 94,000 acres and is quickly becoming one of Colorado’s worst wildfires in history.
(PHOTOS -> Spring Fire in southern Colorado )
Many areas are still under mandatory evacuation, and several assistance centers have been set up. A map has been created to show the areas under evacuation and where residents can get assistance.
Interactive Map: (Mandatory evacuation zones are in red, pre-evac zones are yellow. Blue lines mark the fire area.)
At 94,125 acres, the Spring Fire is the third largest wildfire in Colorado history. Firefighters had made progress on containment over the weekend, but a burst in growth in the north end of the fire countered those efforts. The fire grew nearly 20,000 acres in 24 hours.
(WATCH -> Aerial footage of the Spring Fire from July 3 )
One person, 52-year-old Danish national Jesper Joergenson, has been arrested and is facing arson charges for starting the fire. Joergenson, who is in the U.S. illegally due to an expired visa, says he didn’t start the fire intentionally but changed his story several times when questioned by authorities.
As of Wednesday, the fire remains at only five percent containment. Much of the focus was on keeping La Veta from burning. The Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team said that the eastern fire line was being expanded by bulldozers and road graders.
There are more than 400 people working on this fire. Crews are prioritizing protecting structures, though we learned at around 6 p.m. Wednesday that 132 homes were lost. Officials previously put that number at 104 homes.
As far as traffic goes, you’ll want to avoid the general area west of Walsenburg down south to Trinchera Peak. Highway 160 remains closed from La Veta to Ft. Garland. Highway 12 is closed from mile marker 7 to mile marker 22.5. Highway 69 is closed from mile marker 5 to mile marker 42, except for local traffic.
The Spring Fire is the largest of the currently burning wildfires in Colorado , including the High Chateau Fire in Teller County, the Weston Pass Fire in Park County, and the 416 Fire near Durango that has been burning for about a month.
