Dead Dog Fire Nearly Triples In Size

RANGELY, Colo. (CBS4) - Firefighters are working hard to get a handle on a wildfire in northwest Colorado.

The Dead Dog Fire tripled in size today, and is now nearly 18,000 acres.

It's burning in the Dead Dog Gulch near the Utah border. It's one of several fires burning in the area.

The fire forced many people out of their homes, several of whom have since been able to return.

A community meeting was held Tuesday evening to update residents on the incident.

Currently the fire is 10 percent contained, but it continues to grow despite the progress on one of the flanks because of the wind in the area.

A Type 2 Incident command team and nearly 200 firefighters are working the fires in the area.

"Rangely is a pretty small community, so to see so many people come to help us has been fantastic," resident Sharma Vaughn said. "When you live so rural and so remote and have so few resources, to see people come in from all over the place has been really overwhelming. We're very thankful for it."

The Dead Dog Fire is currently estimated at 17,743 acres in size.

Wildfire Resources

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Wildfire Photo Galleries

- See images from the most destructive wildfires (Black Forest, Waldo Canyon, High Park and Fourmile), the deadliest (Storm King) and largest wildfire (Hayman) in Colorado history.