It may be Monday before crews fully contain a fire that has burned 5,343 acres in southwest Colorado.
More than 200 firefighters are battling two forest fires in the area.
The largest, the Narraguinnep fire, has burned roughly 8 square miles of forest and scrub land since it was started by lightning Friday, said Pam Wilson, information officer for the interagency Durango Fire Dispatch Office. It’s about 12 miles southeast of Dove Creek along the Dolores River.
Fire managers estimate the fire was 25 percent contained late Monday, unchanged from the previous day.
Only a few structures are threatened — fishing camps and cow camps used by cattle ranchers.
“It’s a fairly remote area of mostly pine, brushy and grassy areas,” Wilson said. “Several stands of old- growth piñon have been burned.”
Firefighters were aided by two helicopters dropping retardant, and heavy smoke blanketed much of southwestern Colorado.
A smaller fire, about 5 miles to the south, began burning a week ago when lightning struck trees. The Bradfield Bridge fire had consumed roughly 3,200 acres as of Monday.
Firefighters are allowing that blaze to burn under a contained/confined strategy, which allows the fire to burn out the undergrowth without damaging the tall trees.
“This removes the heavy fuels for any future fires in the area,” Wilson said.
No structures have been threatened by this fire.
Wilson said crews are keeping the fire from burning along drainages leading to the Delores River and downstream to McPhee Reservoir.
She said the two blazes are the first major fires of the summer in the Durango area. “We’ve been able to catch a number of smaller fires before they became a problem,” she said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. Mike McPhee: 303-954-1409 or mmcphee@denverpost.com
