Colorado wildfires: 2 new wildfires spark in southwestern state, force evacuations

Two wildfires that sparked Saturday in southwestern Colorado have forced several communities across La Plata County to evacuate according to fire authorities The Elkhorn fire which started as a structure fire at about p m Saturday and spread into the wildland is burning on acres with no containment Operations Chief Nick Collard explained in a morning briefing Crews are working to prevent the fire from spreading toward nearby homes and structures Collard noted It s burning on county and U S Forest Operation land about miles northeast of Durango fire representatives revealed Three zones were under mandatory evacuation orders on Sunday The evacuation area is bordered to the south by Stevens Creek and to the west by County Road County Road and the Animas River according to the county s evacuation map The north and east sides of the evacuation zone extend into the San Juan National Forest Two additional zones along Elkhorn Mountain Road and County Road are under pre-evacuation orders according to the map Those are likely to turn into mandatory evacuation orders county personnel explained Residents can call - - between a m and p m for updated evacuation information or see the current map online at readylaplata org An evacuation shelter is open at Escalante Middle School at Baker Lane in Durango Related Articles injured in crash involving motorcycle in Denver s Capitol Hill injured in Denver shooting near Coors Field Police in rural Colorado plowed into a suspect who had his hands up The undersheriff who gave the command has since been promoted Moffat County detective involved in violent encounters was previously accused of criminal behavior Preventing youth violence in Denver with jobs hospital visits and quesadillas A second wildfire burning south of Durango had consumed roughly acres Saturday night The Rim Road fire prompted evacuations along and south of County Road down to where the fire is burning near Indian Direction according to the county s evacuation map Nearby wells and natural gas lines were shut off Saturday due to their proximity to the fire according to the Southern Ute Tribe No updates on the fire s size or containment were available Sunday morning but the evacuation orders remained functioning This is a evolving story and may be updated Get more Colorado news by signing up for our Mile High Roundup email newsletter