Evacuation order lifted Thursday for Trujillo Creek Fire; homeowners can return but will be on pre-evacuation status
LAS ANIMAS COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- At 5 p.m. Thursday, authorities announced that they were lifting the evacuation order for homeowners near the Trujillo Creek Fire which has burned for four days west of the town of Aguilar.
Affected homeowners will remain on pre-evacuation status until further notice.
According to an 8:42 a.m. update by the Las Animas County Sheriff's Department, the fire is 118 acres with 10% containment.
Aerial water drops resumed at 8 a.m. Thursday and will continue until the wind no longer allows this to be done safely.
"We were expecting 40 mph winds this afternoon," said Joe Richards, the county's emergency manager. "But getting water on that fire in that rough, steep terrain was a big help in reducing smoke."
Richards said that a helicopter was dropping water from two sources -- a local rancher's pond, and truckloads brought in by county officials.
"We had two fixed-wing aircraft making drops from a distance Wednesday while the winds cooperated," he explained. "Today we're doing more precise drops with the helicopter."
Richards said that besides two cabins that were destroyed the night of the fire, no other structures or animals are currently threatened.
"We're in a more defensive posture today," he explained. "We've opened the county fairgrounds in Trinidad, in case people need a place to bring their animals. So far, we've only had a few chickens."
Authorities believe that they have all the resources they'll need -- unless the fire worsens.
"The good thing about it being this early in the season, is we're getting resources that wouldn't be available during the peak of the season," Richards said.
One resident who lives near the fire said that out of skepticism, he was returning home earlier in the day without authorities' knowledge.
"How can there be only 10% containment and no smoke plume?" asked the resident, who declined to identify himself. "That doesn't make any sense. There's no danger here."
Fire crews aren't the only people busy in the Aguilar area: A volunteer community effort has started in the neighboring town of Gulnare, at the Spanish Peaks Bar & Grill, to provide daily meals and snacks for the firefighters.
"It's nothing new to us," said longtime volunteer Dottie Feister. "We've helped out on numerous fires in the past. Everyone is donating for the cause. Firefighters need at least 6,000 calories a day to keep all their proteins and all their nourishments up. But they also need things like Chapstick, lotion, cold medicine, allergy medicine."
James Gallaher is part of the volunteer team.
"I think the community just came together and decided that we need to get some hot food up to those guys who are spending 12, 14, 16-hour days up on the mountain, overnight, just trying to keep them fed and show them how much we appreciate their hard work," he said.
Another Hot Shot team from Sacramento, Calif., has arrived to join the Juniper Valley and Smokey Bear teams out of New Mexico.
Below is a look at aerial assistance Wednesday.
With the arrival of the Sacramento team, there is now 100 personnel on the scene of the Trujillo Creek Fire.
The sheriff's department said it's hopeful the expected moisture in the upcoming days will help with the firefighting efforts.
Thursday's goal is to hold the fire in place and prevent further spread.
The standby evacuation status affects residents of Mauricio Canyon, Trujillo Creek, and anyone in that area for a three-mile radius around the fire.
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