Grizzly Creek Fire: 1 Week After Igniting, Nearly 650 Personnel Are Fighting The Wildfire
GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4) - It's been a week since the Grizzly Creek Fire started in Colorado's Glenwood Canyon, and the fire remains one of the nation's top firefighting priorities. A total of around 25,000 acres have burned and Interstate 70 remains closed in both directions in the canyon. The wildfire still remains at 0% containment.
On Monday the number of personnel involved in the firefight was listed at nearly 650. That includes bulldozer and helicopter operators.
A firefighting team from Arvada -- Arvada Fire's Brush 58 Wildland Fire Crew -- is among the many firefighters across the state who are battling the fire on its front lines. They shared photos on Monday showing an up-close fire retardant drop by a large firefighting plane, as well as a section of forest that has been reduced to ash and blackened, burned trees.
Firefighting planes were able to make retardant drops on the fire on Sunday, and 17 different helicopters are being used to do water drops. Because of the terrain, fighting the fire on the ground continues to be very difficult and dangerous.
No homes have been lost in the fire. Protecting residences in the Bair Ranch, No Name, High Aspen and Spring Valley areas is currently a top priority for firefighters. All of those communities are under mandatory evacuation orders.
For many days there have been extensive resources put toward preventing the fire from spreading west toward Glenwood Springs and east into populated areas in Eagle County. That continues, according to fire manager Jeff Surber, and more resources are now being added to the northern side of the fire.
The Grizzly Creek Fire started in the afternoon on Aug. 10 and the cause is unknown.
