Matt Stensland, Steamboat Today
The Big Red Fire burns Monday in North Routt County in the Big Red Park area of the Routt National Forest. Getting your player ready...
The Big Red fire has become the biggest fire Routt County has seen on U.S. Forest Service land since 2002.
Fire officials are hopeful there are no structures or other property in Big Red’s path in the Yampa Valley.
By Tuesday, the lightning-caused fire had burned 529 acres of forest littered with dead trees.
District Ranger Chad Stewart said computer modeling predicts the fire will burn 2,000 acres.
“Since it’s already at 500, that makes me think it’s pretty low,” Stewart said.
The fire is not expected to be out until snow begins to accumulate.