LAKE COUNTY, Colo. — New evacuation orders were given to residents Sunday night amid growth of the Willow Fire, the Lake County Sheriff's Office said.
The 4,100-acre fire is burning south of Turquoise Lake and west of Leadville. It was first reported on the afternoon of June 28. Evacuations remain in place. Click here for an interactive map with the most up-to-date details on evacuations.
To sign up for emergency alerts in Lake County, click here.
Below are the latest details on this fire.
Monday, July 6
4:26 p.m. | Containment increase | The containment for the Willow Fire has increased from 1% to 5%, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
3:35 p.m. | Aircraft update | In an operations update, Rocco Terracciano, air operations branch director, said about six aircraft are currently working around the Willow Fire. All are working out of the Leadville airport, he said.
In addition, a Type 1 Skycrane is expected to arrive on Monday.
3:30 p.m. | Re-entry information | Following an in-depth discussion today, the Lake County Sheriff's Office and U.S. Forest Service Fire Operations have updated some evacuation zones.
"To simplify our evacuation map and improve clarity, we have made an update to Zone 6A. Zone 6B now includes Lake Fork, Stargazer Circle, and County Road 11," the Lake County Sheriff's Office said. "Residents wanting to return to the 6B Zone are advised that a Salamander (re-entry) card is required for re-entry."
Re-entry will start at 3 p.m. with anybody who needs additional assistance, such as older residents and people with disabilities. Lake Fork residents can re-enter at 3:30 p.m. and residents in the surrounding areas will be allowed in at 4:30 p.m.
1:20 p.m. | Community meeting | A community meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Lake County High School auditorium, located at 1000 W. Fourth Street in Leadville. Fire officials will provide an update on the wildfire.
9:28 a.m. | Total acreage update | The Willow Fire stands at 4,143 total acres burning with 1% containment, according to the Southwest Area Complex Incident Management Team.
The American Red Cross of Colorado has relocated the Colorado Mountain College evacuation center to Darren Patterson Christian Academy in Buena Vista.
The Lake County Regional Airport in Leadville has closed to all flights other than for medical transport.
Meteorologists are predicting a 50% chance of showers tomorrow with wind gusts up to 50 mph that will make smoke from the Willow Fire visible throughout the area.
9 a.m. | Lake County Sheriff's Office briefing | There were zero calls for fireworks on July 4, Lake County Sheriff Speckman said Monday morning.
A temporary flight restriction has expanded over the Willow Fire area. More information from the FAA can be found here. Drone use can interfere with firefighting operations and pose a serious risk to safety.
“We had an issue yesterday we had to address," Lake County Sheriff Speckman said Monday morning.
7 a.m. | Re-entry ID card pickup | Residents in evacuation and pre-evacuation zones can pick up their re-entry identification cards through 1 p.m. at the E. 6th and Poplar Gravel Lot, according to Lake County.
From 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., residents in need of re-entry ID can go to the Lake County Public Library Amax Room.
Sunday, July 5
9 p.m. | Total acreage update | 3,987 acres have burned in the Willow Fire, according to the Facebook page dedicated to tracking the wildfire. It sits at 1% containment.
8 p.m. | Road closures | The Lake County Sheriff's Office announced new road closures Sunday night, including Highway 24 at Highway 300 to block Highway 300. County Road 4 and County Road 5 at the railroad tracks was also closed to block County Road 4. The County Road 9 and 99 road closure remains to block County Road 9.
Denver7 is tracking the latest information on each of the wildfires burning in Colorado. If you'd like to catch up on coverage from last week, check out stories from Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday through the weekend.
3:30 p.m. | FEMA grant | Colorado has been authorized for a FEMA Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) for the Willow Fire, Governor Jared Polis announced. This will make funding available for FEMA to pay 75% of the state's eligible firefighting costs. The grant does not provide assistance to individual home or business owners, nor infrastructure damage caused by the fire.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office ordered evacuations in Zone 6A, while Zones 1, 4 and 7 were placed into pre-evacuation status as the Willow Fire expanded south.
The latest map is below.
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