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The Bear Creek fire in Colorado, which forced the evacuation of 235 homes earlier this week, is now 100% contained.
The Colorado Springs Fire Department made the announcement Friday night after hot, windy weather conditions lashed flames dangerously near homes on Thursday.
THE NORTHWEST RECEIVES RAIN AND MOUNTAIN SNOW AS THE CENTRAL US TAKES ADVANTAGE OF WARMER THAN AVERAGE TEMPERATURES
“I want to thank the firefighters on the fire ground,” said Colorado Springs Fire Chief Ted Collas. “They did a great job. When you all have the opportunity to go up there and you see where that fire went, how close the houses were and how it burned down to the houses … “
The 26-acre blaze started before noon Thursday, on the west side of Bear Creek Park.
The cause is under investigation, officials said.
Evacuees were allowed to return home Thursday evening, as the blaze was just over 50% under control.
Nursing homes near the blaze were subject to pre-evacuation orders which have since been lifted.
An aerial attack on the blazes was launched early Thursday and more than 30 firefighters worked to contain the blaze, with eight night shifts.
A helicopter dropped about 8,000 gallons of water on the blaze, CBS Denver reported Friday.
No structures were reported lost.
“We have so many residents in Colorado Springs who take fire mitigation seriously. I can’t thank them enough, ”Collas said.
“Their mitigation efforts and the mitigation efforts we made with our own fire department in the open spaces kept the fire low to the ground and prevented it from entering them. fuels we talk about all the time and get in higher fuels and bigger fuels, ”he added.
The western portion of Colorado Springs is considered to be at extreme forest fire risk.
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In 2018, the Colorado State Forest Service reported that about half of all Coloradans lived in areas at risk of forest fires.
Record high temperatures were reported this week from Colorado to the southwest, ABC News reported on Friday.
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