East Peak Fire. They were building on work done Saturday to minimize the
spread in the Spanish Peaks Wilderness Area and to protect structures.
Fire managers are currently conducting a burnout operation to starve the
fire of fuels on the southern boundary. Conditions are predicted to be
ideal for this operation because winds are coming from the southeast rather
than the southwest. A large smoke column might be produced by this
operation.
A red flag warning is in effect through 8 p.m. Sunday, meaning that
conditions — wind, heat and relative humidity, among other factors — are
conducive to wildfire.
The fire, which began Wednesday with a lightning strike, had grown to
12,442 acres by Sunday morning, and containment was 10 percent.
Mandatory evacuations imposed Wednesday remain in effect east of La Veta, west of Interstate 25 and south of Walsenburg to the Las Animas County
line. About 300 properties are within the evacuation area, and evacuees can
find shelter at the John Mall High School in Walsenburg.
Updates will be provided at a community meeting at 7 p.m. Sunday, June 23,
at the Huerfano County Community Center,928 Russell St., in Walsenburg.
For more information about this and other fires, log onto www.inciweb.org.
Follow the fire on Twitter @TeamC_FireInfo. Messages from the incident
commander and other information are posted on the Team C website at
http://sites.google.com/site/rmteamc. For more information, call
719-315-4808 or 719-742-3882.
Information provided by East Peak Fire Information Officer.
