A wildfire burning in northwest Colorado, fueled by strong winds, grew rapidly Thursday and was threatening homes and oil and gas structures.
The Winter Valley fire, burning in Moffat County, grew from 500 acres to 3,500 during a 30-minute span Thursday, according to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. The fire had grown to 3,500 acres by about 6 p.m., propelled by 50 mph winds.
It started about noon Thursday and was moving north and east toward Deerlodge Park, according to Colorado Wildfire Information. It’s threatening 25 to 30 homes. U.S. 40 was closed by the fire from Maybell west to Elk Springs.
The fire jumped the highway in an area and burned power lines, causing outages, according to the Yampa Valley Electric Association.
Mandatory evacuations for some residents are in place, and hunters are being evacuated from some spots.
Winds are expected to continue Friday, with gusts up to 40 mph, according to the National Weather Service. There’s a 20 percent chance of precipitation after 3 p.m. Friday, in the form of isolated showers and thunderstorms.