Current Wildfires in Colorado

There are eleven wildfires burning in the state of Colorado at the moment.  That doesn't count the small fire that broke out in some trees yesterday afternoon in the city limits of Littleton.  In that fire, named the Wildland, someone tossed a cigarette butt without it being "out"; the resultant fire burned through four back yards and destroyed a garage, plus some adult trees.  Sheer carelessness and stupidity caused that half-acre fire.  Luckily, it was spotted quickly and two fire units were able to put the fire completely out.
   The 20 acre Golf Course fire at Grand Lake is 100 % contained.  It is still smoldering, but is not capable of spreading any further.
   The Badger Creek fire, which straddles the Colorado and Wyoming state borders, has burned 21,176 acres, and has 80 %  containment.
   The High Chateau fire, which is west of Wright's Reservoir and northeast of Cripple Creek, now has 75 % containment. It has consumed 1,400 acres so far.
   The Turret fire, at last report yesterday morning, had burned 6 acres and was 10 % contained.  That fire is located 21 miles northeast of Glenwood Springs.
  The Burro fire is burning in the San Juan National Forest, 14 miles south of Rico.  It is now 40 % contained, and has burned 4,415 acres.
   The Sugarloaf fire is located 13 miles southwest of Fraser, and has consumed 1,200 acres with no containment.
   The 416 fire continues to spread, 10 miles south of Durango.  It has burned 54,128 acres so far, and fire crews have reached a 45 % containment working for the past month.
   The Weston Pass fire has damaged one home and one out building, while burning 10,727 acres.  It is located 9 miles southwest of Fairplay, and has 5 % containment.
   The Adobe fire, 5 miles west of Wetmore in Custer County, has consumed 85 acres.  It has 0 % containment, and was started by lightning.
   The Lake Christine fire has 0 % containment, and had burned 2,377 acres.  It is burning west of the Basalt Gun Range, and it was started by the use of tracer bullets on the gun range.  Police are interviewing folks who were at the range when the fire began.
   Then there is the Spring fire.  It is burning in two counties (Costilla and Huerfano).  It is only 5 % contained, and has been burning for a month.  The fire has consumed 104 homes, and burned over 95,740 acres.  It was started by a homeless man, who had built a fire pit to cook some meat.  The man is a visitor from Denmark, and can't get a legal job in the United States because his Visa to the USA expired quite some time ago.  So Jesper Jorgenson has been panhandling and camping out on open, nationally owned lands.  He admits his fire pit was the beginning of the Spring fire....  What destruction this man hath wrought.....
    So, let's see - the total acreage burning and burned is at 191,284, which converts to 298.88 square miles. That means that almost 3.5 % of the state of Colorado is burning or has burned over the past month.  No wonder it's smoky and hazy.  No wonder folks with allergies and COPD are having a difficult time breathing.

   

Please be extremely careful with fire!

Boulder Wildfire in Sunshine Canyon

Boulder has been extremely dry - no rain, no snow.  The drought caught up with us this morning.  A man who had to visit the bathroom at 1:40 this morning, glanced out his window and saw flames on the wall of Sunshine Canyon, to the west of town.  He called 911, the emergency number, and reported it.  Thanks to his call, reverse 911 calls started going out, and over 1,000 house were evacuated.  People and small pets can go to the East Boulder Community Center, and large animals have been evacuated to the County Fairgrounds.
   Beatrice and I awoke to heavy smoke and the smell of burning this morning.  We thought that someone had set a trash dumpster on fire - but could look out the window and see smoke billowing up directly to the west of our building.  So we immediately turned on the local news and found out about the Sunshine Canyon fire.  It's a block to the south, and then 1.5 miles to the west of us.  At this time, 12 hours after the original call, the fire is 20 % contained, and has burned 70 acres...  Luckily, no homes or buildings have caught fire.  Besides fire fighters on the ground, both helicopters and planes have been dropping water and slurry to deter the spread of the flames.  I hope it gets contained completely soon...
   Usually March is one of the snowiest months of the year in, and around, Boulder.  So far this month, we have had 1/8 inch of precipitation - a 6-hour drizzle.  Our usual high temperatures in March are in the upper 40s and low 50s; yesterday we reached 82 degrees, and the regular high temperatures have been in the 60s and 70s.  Today we have a high wind watch, typical of March.
   I picked up a client from the Denver Airport last night at 8:30, and he asked me if I thought it would snow again this year, because he was thinking about taking his snow tires off his car.  I laughed.  I told it was going to snow at the end of this month, in April, and probably the last snowfall would be the second week of May.  He was aghast - and wanted to know if I'd read that in the Farmer's Almanac.  I told him, "Nope.  I feel it in my bones."

Photos of the Sunshine Canyon fire:

 

Seventy-two Uncontained Wildfires Burning

According to the latest reports, there are 72 uncontained large wildfires burning in five western states (California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington) and southern Canada.  Two large wildfires have been contained.  Containment consists of "a control line that has been completed around the fire, and any associated fire spots, which can reasonably be expected to stop the fire's spread."  Over 2,500 square miles of the United States are burning, or have been burnt, in the past month.   That is a piece of land larger than the entire state of Delaware.
   The mountains and Flatirons are again covered by haze here in Boulder.  We are under a particulate advisory - meaning there is much more than just smoke in the air, there's ash and residue from the fires floating around.  I have COPD, so after I fed, watered and medicated Lynn's critters today, I took Tess on a short walk and then returned home.  The only problem is that it's a Sunday, so the buses only run once an hour.  I could stand and wait for 55 minutes for the bus, or I could walk home in 20 minutes.  I decided to walk.  Luckily, one of the Githens Acres neighbors stopped and picked me up, and dropped me off at my new apartment.  -  And asked me to join in a Poker tournament next weekend, too. (I just might do it.)
   Today I scrubbed down the bathrooms, shook out the rugs, and swept and mopped the floors.  I purchased a new toilet brush, and had to admit that I laughed out loud when I saw a "Customer Service/ Questions and Instructions" toll-free number listed on the tag.  Ummmm...  What kind of instructions are needed for a toilet brush?  (Other than don't scrub vigorously with your mouth open?)
   Nedi practiced tight-rope walking this morning - around and around the edge of the balcony.  My biggest fear was that he'd try to play "owl" - he sits up on his hind end, with his fore feet held against his belly, and he tries to make a 360-degree circle with his head.  Of course, his neck won't do that, and so, at some point, he over-balances and falls down.  I'm afraid he's going to do it while sitting on the edge of the balcony railing and fall 18 feet to the asphalt parking lot below us.  I know cats are resilient, and have an uncanny ability to land on their feet, but - 18 feet onto asphalt could break bones...  (Worry, worry, worry.  It's all mother's ever do.)
 

Smokey

Due to all the wildfires on the West coast, we were told to expect hazy conditions in Boulder today.  That also means to expect poor air quality for breathing.  It was already hazy out when I arose this morning; by 6 p.m., I could barely see the mountains 30 blocks away from my balcony.  The air doesn't yet have a smell to it - but it definitely dries out your nose and throat.  Another reason to stay well hydrated here a mile above sea level.   I fed and medicated Lynn's cats and dog this morning, fed the carp, and then walked Tess.  Afterwards, I watered the plants in need of assistance - like the clematis beside the mailbox.   I grabbed a few grocery items on the way home, then spent the day cleaning and reading and sorting.
    And watching the fourth quarter of the Eagles game, to see Tim Tebow play.  I watched a bit of the Broncos game during the Eagles' halftime, and after TT's game was finished.  Isn't the quarterback supposed to be protected?  How did RG III  get a concussion and a shoulder stinger in a preseason game?
   And I'll have to call the apartment maintenance team - I called at 11 p.m. Friday night to let them know that the fat-looking insulated pipe/hose that dips down in the front of the utility closet was leaking.   It was a slow, small steady leak for about ten minutes - and fell into a collecting pan that encircles the water heater.  The guy was going to come over then and there, but Beatrice and I wanted to go to bed.  I had pretty much forgotten about the leak until 7:45 this evening, when it sounded like someone was beating hard plastic with a hammer somewhere in the hallway.  I opened the utility closet and watched a pretty heavy stream of drips fall into the collecting pan for about three minutes.  It was loud enough to send my cats into hiding.   Hopefully, there won't be much more drippage tonight or tomorrow, and I can get maintenance to come Monday afternoon, while I'm home.