A 2,000-acre wildfire burning on Colorado’s Western Slope had destroyed three buildings as of Sunday night, fire officials said.
The lightning-sparked Elk fire started southeast of Meeker in Rio Blanco County just after noon Saturday and grew to roughly 600 acres by Sunday afternoon.
The fire more than doubled in size throughout the evening, jumping a county road and consuming 2,000 acres, according to an 11 p.m. update from the Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff’s officials said two houses and one outbuilding were lost in the fire.
The fire also jumped parts of White River, and sheriff’s officials said those areas were firefighters’ top priority Sunday night.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis verbally issued a disaster declaration for the wildfire on Sunday, allowing the state to direct more resources to fighting the fire.
Meeker is about 70 miles northeast of Glenwood Springs and 40 miles north of Interstate 70.
Evacuation orders remain in effect Monday for both sides of County Road 8 between mile marker 11 and mile marker 16. The road is also closed to the public between mile markers 11 and 18.
A pre-evacuation notice was issued for residents along County Road 57, which includes Miller Creek, sheriff’s officials said. Residents in the area should be prepared to evacuate if fire activity escalates.
Evacuees should report to the Fairfield Center at 200 Main Street in Meeker, sheriff’s officials said.
The fire is burning on a combination of private, Bureau of Land Management and Colorado Division of Wildland land, according to the sheriff’s office.
Ground crews and aerial teams are both working to fight the fire, though the exact number of people out in the field was not available Monday.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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