As more than 100 firefighters continued to battle a 3,500 acre wildfire in the Boulder foothills, more than 1,000 homes were ordered evacuated by this evening as a plume of smoke continued to blanket the Denver metro area.
Four firefighters were relieved of duty because their homes were among the charred, Laura McConnell, spokeswoman for the countywide coalition of fire departments tackling the blaze today.
“We ask that you keep these people in your thoughts,” she said of all those who have lost property. So far, no injuries to residents or fire crews have been reported.
Firefighters ordered mandatory evacuations of an area bounded in the west by the Peak to Peak Highway, on the east by U.S. 36, on the north by Left Hand Canyon Road and on the south by Highway 119.
Many structures were lost after winds gusting up to 45 mph buffeted flames in a pine forest, according to Cmdr. Rick Brough of the Boulder County Sheriff’s office.
“I haven’t heard of any deaths or anyone injured,” Brough said in an afternoon news conference. “Our big thing right now is saving lives.”
The Fourmile Canyon Wildfire was first reported at about 10 a.m. near the 7100 block of Fourmile Canyon Road in Boulder Canyon, about 6 miles northwest of Boulder, Brough said. The cause of the fire has not yet been reported.
“The investigation will come after we get containment and control,” he said.
The goal, Brough said, “is just to get people out the area and firemen into the area.”
More than 100 firefighters from 35 different fire agencies in the region, including the U.S. Forest Service and the Colorado State Forest Service, are fighting the fire. Another 70 firefighters are prepared to join the battle.
At 5 p.m. two jumbo-sized slurry planes carrying 3,000 gallons of retardant and a smaller plane carrying 700 gallons, which had been grounded due to high winds most of the day, were given the go ahead to take off at the Rocky Mountain Airport.
John Bustos, spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service, said they ordered another four of the larger planes from different locations to fight the fire beginning at daybreak Tuesday.
“We’re ramping up,” Bustos said. “We know that this fire is moving and we have to get out in it’s way. We need to sit on this as soon as possible.”
Planes will be back in the air at daylight, McConnell said.
“At this point, we’re not even discussing containment and control,” she said.
The steep narrow roads made it difficult for firefighters to maneuver, Brough said. Some were deemed too dangerous for fire crews to enter because of unstable terrain.
The fire filled the air with thick clouds of smoke.
“It’s jet black out here,” David Jones, who lives Gold Hill, about three-tenths of a mile from the fire, said this morning. “There is ash falling from the sky. We’re getting out of here.”
Brough said during the day wind spread the fire faster than firefighters could keep up, preventing them from being able to build a fire line. An estimated 3,500 acres have burned.
“The winds will be a very large factor in how this plays out,” McConnell said.
Weather forecasters predicted the winds will reverse and die down in the evening, forcing the flames back over the area already burned. That would help firefighters, Brough said.
Winds were expected to decrease from 7 to 14 mph up until 8 p.m. to 2 to 8 mph between 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. Tuesday, said Kyle Fredin, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Boulder.
This morning Sheriff’s deputies were knocking on doors evacuating people and other homeowners were being contacted in reverse 911 calls, according to a Boulder County Sheriff’s dispatcher.
Homes in a 3-square mile area around Gold Hill, the Mountain Meadows and Sierra Antigua subdivisions and Salina were first evacuated.
Later, subdivisions in the foothills above Boulder including Pine Brook Hills, Boulder Heights and Whispering Pines were evacuated. Additionally, anyone from mile marker 3 in Sugarloaf to Boulder Canyon; and Lickskillet west to Sawmill was ordered to leave. Sugarloaf Road from Colorado 119 to Colorado 72, also known as the Peak to Peak Highway, was evacuated.
Emergency reverse 911 systems were not working for about two hours this afternoon, but have been returned to service, McConnell said.
Firefighters were sending evacuees to North Boulder Recreation Center, New Vista High School and the Nederland Community Center. An animal shelter for larger animals was set up at the Boulder County Fairgrounds.
About 100 people and 20 dogs were gathered at the North Boulder Community Center in the evening including Charlene Austin, her husband, and their two labrador retrievers.
“We grabbed some pictures and things and got out,” Austin said. “It’s terrible not to know what’s going on out there but it’s a blessing to know we’re OK and our dogs are OK.”
The American Red Cross opened an overnight shelter for fire evacuees at the Coors Event Center at the University of Colorado.
A wildfire smoke health advisory was issued for Boulder County through 4 p.m. Tuesday with moderate to heavy smoke expected in Four Mile Canyon.
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206 or kmitchell@denverpost.com