Firefighters Gaining on Colorado Blaze

Dozens of residents breathed a sigh of relief Monday as firefighters took advantage of cooler, cloudy weather to get the upper hand on a 1,087-acre fire in a mountainous area dotted with homes.

The fire was 60% contained by nightfall. Firefighters expected full containment by 6 tonight.

“It’s not over yet, but it’s close,” said Randy Burgess, a spokesman for the fire managers.

Crews worked in 70-degree weather, clearing brush away from houses and building lines around the blaze near Flagstaff Mountain, about 10 miles southwest of Boulder. Last weekend, temperatures hovered in the 90s.

The fire, which jumped from treetop to treetop Sunday, smoldered close to the ground Monday. Helicopters dropped water on hot spots.

Trenches encircled several homes, and trees were coated in reddish fire-retardant slurry. In a few cases, the land just outside the houses was blackened from flames, but all homes had been saved, said incident commander Joe Hartman.

Some of the 475 firefighters said the proximity of the houses was on their minds as they worked. “You don’t want to see homes burn,” said James White, a northern Colorado firefighter.

About 220 residents were told they could return to their homes Monday night. But electrical power had been cut and could remain off three more days, Boulder County Sheriff’s Office supervisor Krista Kaknes said.

Authorities believe the fire grew from an illegal campfire in the area on Friday. It grew quickly throughout the weekend, nearly doubling in size on Sunday to 1,087 acres.

Ron Gosnell, a state forester, said a seven-year fire-mitigation project with the Boulder County Parks and Recreation Department helped keep the blaze from spreading.

Gov. Bill Owens paid a visit to firefighters Monday afternoon.

In northwestern Colorado, 160 firefighters fought four blazes on public lands that had burned several hundred acres. A fire in south-central Colorado near Canon City occupied more than 100 firefighters as it scorched 100 acres.

Two Colorado fires burned more than 10,000 acres each in June.

Nearly 6.7 million acres have burned across the United States this year. It has been called the nation’s worst fire season in a half century.