Durango – Firefighters managed Thursday to stunt the Black Ridge fire, which has burned more than 400 acres of piñon-juniper forest southwest of Durango.
The fire burned actively after dark Wednesday, growing from 250 to 478 acres. Firefighters worked through the night to build a line along its western flank.
Managers estimated the fire was 50 percent contained by late Thursday afternoon.
“Things are looking pretty good out there,” Forest Service spokeswoman Pamella Wilson said.
Today’s forecast calls for hot, dry weather but light winds, she said.
Elsewhere in the state, the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office made 188 phone calls Thursday warning residents within 2 miles of a wildfire to voluntarily evacuate as firefighters battled flames suspected of being started by someone burning trash.
The blaze, about 4 miles north of Lyons, scorched 12 to 15 acres of grass and trees, sheriff’s spokeswoman Eloise Campanella said in a statement.
Near Durango, a dozen homes in High Flume Canyon initially considered at risk were better protected by Thursday, Wilson said.
No evacuations had taken place.
The fire, probably ignited by lightning, was spotted at 12:45 p.m. Wednesday on the east side of Black Ridge on the Southern Ute Reservation.
