Firefighters At Platte River Fire Working Through Tough Terrain, Gain 50% Containment
JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - Despite hard terrain, firefighters have contained 50% of the Platte River Fire in Jefferson County. The fire is burning about 11 miles southeast of Deckers.
Crews say most of the containment is north of County Road 97 and along the southern edge of the fire, south of County Road 97.
On Sunday, crews are said to improve fire lines and monitor the efforts they've achieved over the course of the last two days.
The fire, first reported on Thursday afternoon, is believed to be caused by a tree falling on a power line. No structures are threatened.
Nearly 40 acres have burned.
Fire officials at the U.S. Forest Service say they don't expect to have full suppression for several weeks because of the extremely rugged terrain.
To access the fire from the ground, West Metro Fire's dive team has been ferrying hand crews across the river into the steep terrain.
On Friday evening, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office announced that evacuations for the Platte River Fire will remain in place until Sunday evening. That evacuation area is along South Platte River Road and South Foxton Road. Twenty-five people have been contacted to leave their homes.
