A steady stretch of hot, dry weather prompted the U.S. Forest Service to warn that most of the Front Range will be more susceptible to forest fires through Wednesday or Thursday.
Steve Segin, a spokesman for the Rocky Mountain Area Coordination Center in Lakewood, said there is a chance for dry lightning to spark fires and that winds expected to enter the area overnight into today easily could spread them.
“We’ve entered the heart of fire season,” Segin said.
Segin said fire forecasters are most concerned about areas south of Colorado Springs, where rainfall totaled just half an inch in May, compared with 4 1/2 inches north of the Palmer Divide. The fire danger is considered moderate north of the Palmer Divide and high to extreme to the south.
The National Weather Service predicted a 20 percent chance of rain for Wednesday and Thursday nights, which could help reduce the fire potential.
The warning issued Monday signals that fire season is beginning to move north, Segin said.
The advent of fire season makes some officials nervous, especially given that U.S. Forest Service fire crews have been battling large wildland blazes in Arizona, New Mexico and southern Colorado.
Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said his office speaks with federal authorities weekly, and “the assumption is that there will be less to work with” this week as crews work on fires farther south.
Segin said firefighters can easily be redeployed if a fire erupts in northern Colorado.
Still, the relief Pelle felt when rain caused the grass to grow green and tall this spring is gone.
“It worries us,” he said of the latest warning. He noted that much of his crew was “shell-shocked” by the Fourmile fire west of Boulder that destroyed 169 homes and damaged many others in September.
Pelle said that as the fire danger increases, he will once again enact fire bans.
Segin reminded people to use common sense and to check the weather before starting outdoor fires for camping and cooking.
“If it’s going to be windy and dry for the next three days, that might not be the best time for a fire,” he said.
Liz Navratil: 303-954-1054 or lnavratil@denverpost.com
