An evacuation warning was issued Wednesday for homes just north of the New Mexico state line along the west side of Colorado Highway 140 in southwest La Plata County, where a 537-acre wildfire continued to burn out of control.
The Ute 63 fire was first reported Sunday afternoon near Morgan Canyon on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation, about 4 miles west of La Plata Highway (Colorado Highway 140) and 7 miles southwest of Redmesa.
The fire grew from 111 acres Tuesday to 537 acres by Wednesday evening. It is burning in a remote part of the county.
A pre-evacuation notice ‒ meaning residents should be ready to leave at a moment’s notice ‒ was issued about 5:40 p.m. Wednesday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. No further information was released about the evacuation warning, including the number of homes in the affected area.
In the event that evacuations are necessary, La Plata County was reporting a check-in location and shelter at the Breen Community Center, 15300 La Plata Highway.
A Durango Interagency Type 3 team was assigned to the fire, providing air tankers, helicopters, a dozer and about 96 firefighters, according to the Southern Ute Indian Tribe.
Firefighters were working hotspots and trying to expand containment efforts ‒ though the fire was listed as having zero containment as of Wednesday night.
“A substantial number of slurry drops have been conducted using air tankers,” the tribe said. “These drops involve the release of fire retardant ‒ a mixture of water, fertilizer, and other compounds ‒ designed to slow the fire’s spread and create containment lines, particularly in areas that are difficult to access on foot.”
The Durango Interagency Fire Dispatch Center referred questions to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Assisting agencies included Los Pinos Fire, Fort Lewis Mesa Fire, Durango Fire, Upper Pine Fire, San Juan County (N.M.) Fire, the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.
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