Meeker—Firefighting crews can’t let their guard down in Western Colorado. As one fire reaches containment, another flares up. Two fires are currently burning in Rio Blanco County. The Fawn Fire, burning in a remote, rugged area of the Piceance Basin about 30 miles southwest of Meeker has consumed nearly 900 acres. Crews have been working with a helicopter and two single engine air tankers (SEAT) to strengthen containment lines. No structures are threatened. A fire erupted yesterday off of Rio Blanco County Road 5. The Sprague Gulch Fire has burned 20 acres so far and is spreading. Further north, the 260 acre Skunk Creek Fire near the Wyoming state line is burning in rugged terrain. A half-dozen single engine air tankers are battling that blaze along with crews on the ground and in the air. They’re trying to keep the fire from moving south toward structures in the area. There is good news to report on the Divide Fire north of Craig…it was fully contained as of noon Monday after burning almost 20 thousand acres. In Eagle County, the Thornburg Fire outside of Maybell was fully contained last night. It burned over 16-hundred acres.
