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In this photo of Monday, July 2, 2018, a helicopter returns for water to make a drop of water on a forest fire near Fairplay, Colorado.
(Helen H. Richardson / The Denver Post via AP)
A growing number of forest fires in the western United States threaten vacation plans as local rangers and firefighters have significantly reduced access to national parks and land camping before the Independence holidays. A forest fire destroyed more than 100 homes, while flames across the parched west of the United States kept hundreds of other homes under evacuation orders. Late Monday, a fire near Fort Garland, about 205 miles southwest of Denver, destroyed 104 houses in a mountain housing estate.
The Spring Creek fire is one of six Colorado wildfires. While investigators believe that it was triggered by a spark from a home, other fires were triggered by lightning.
The Spring Creek fire continues to burn in Costilla County on Tuesday, July 3, 2018 in La Veta, Colorado.
(Helen H. Richardson / The Denver Post via AP)
Elsewhere, 60 active fires burn across the West, including nine in New Mexico and six in Utah and California, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
In Utah, authorities evacuated more than 200 homes due to a growing forest fire near a popular fishing reservoir southeast of Salt Lake City. Several structures have been lost since the beginning of the fire on Sunday, but we do not know how many.
Meanwhile, a wind-powered forest fire in Northern California that continues to send a thick layer of smoke south of San Francisco was threatening more than 900 people.
County Fire continues along Route 129 near Lake Berryessa in Yolo County, California on Tuesday, July 3, 2018.
(Randall Benton / The Bee of Sacramento by AP)
The massive fire smothered the sky with ash and smoke, prompting officials to cancel the fireworks from 4th of July and to stay inside. 19659005] "The weather is better than we had over the weekend, but it still hampers our efforts and is a cause for concern," said a spokesman for the Department of Forests and Wildlife. fire protection California. Authorities are concerned about the possibility of campfires or fireworks causing new fires due to hot conditions. In Colorado, many communities have canceled fireworks, and a number of public lands and federal counties have banned campfires or outdoor smoking.
A calcined structure is visible through the smoke while a forest fire continues to burn east of the Strawberry Reservoir in Wasatch County , Utah, Tuesday, July 3rd, 2018.
In Arizona, vast expanses of national forests and lands of state trust have been closed since before Remembrance Day, while some cities have canceled fireworks because of the danger of extreme fire.
In New Mexico, part of the three national forests remain closed due to the threat of forest fires, putting a brake on vacation plans. And forests that are open have strict rules, especially with regard to fireworks.
"We are only urging people to be extremely cautious," said a spokeswoman for the New Mexico Forest Division. "We want people to have fun and have fun, but we prefer that they leave the fireworks shows to the professionals."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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