Forests Remain Closed Through Saturday East Of Continental Divide
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (CBS4) - The Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests east of the Continental Divide will remain closed through at least Saturday, according to officials. These sections of forest remain under Stage 3 fire restrictions, which close the forest to all uses.
In Grand County, west of the divide, forests will return to Stage 2 fire restrictions, which bans all fires but opens the forest to other uses. Forest supervisors said remaining closures around fire areas will remain in effect.
Sheriffs in Grand, Clear Creek, Gilpin, Boulder, Larimer and Jefferson counties met twice this week with Colorado Parks and Wildlife regional managers to discuss condition forecasts. The team heard from meteorologists and fire managers about the impact of long and short term weather forecasts.
Officials said a low pressure system is expected to bring moisture to the area over the weekend. The predictions call for very little snow/water equivalency along the Front Range, about one-tenth of an inch.
"We continue to be in historically warm and dry conditions for this time of year," said Forest Supervisor Monte Williams. "What we need to see is a series of storms stacking up, bringing sufficient precipitation and sustained cold temperatures to provide some relief."
The county sheriffs discussed their concern for new fire starts, the risk of more loss of homes, and firefighting personnel and resources at this time of year. The group will meet again on Saturday.
"We have to be sure we are really coming out of this current fire weather trend," Williams added. "A monumental amount of effort goes into closing the forest and opening it up. It's not a switch that we can just keep flipping as conditions change."
Meteorologists say temperatures west of the Continental Divide in Grand County have remained cooler, allowing snow to melt more slowly and moisture to be absorbed by the fuels. Higher amounts of snow are forecasted for the next week west of the Divide.
Forest personnel are preparing to return to Stage 2 fire restrictions across the Sulphur Ranger District by Friday. Forest Closures will remain in place around the Williams Fork and East Troublesome Fire burn areas.
