A wildfire that firefighters have been trying to contain since noon on Friday has spread through Lory State Park west of Fort Collins, Colorado and now threatens homes on the edge of a residential neighborhood in the way of the fire’s path, reports Coloradoan.com.
The cause of the blaze, which is being called the Galena Fire, is unknown, but has grown to be between 750 and 1,000 acres as of Friday night. The homes in the path of the blaze in the Inlet Bay area have been evacuated. Officials said that at least 50 homes are threatened, but are not in imminent danger.
Gusty winds have been fueling the Galena Fire and officials have only been able to contain the fire by five percent. Temperatures in the low 70s have also contributed to the spread of the fire.
Caught off guard by the early blaze, Poudre Fire Authority spokesman Capt. Patrick Love said that resources to contain the fire are not as available.
“A lot of resources … are not available,” Love said. “They’re basically in a winter mode.”
Fort Collins residents are no strangers to wildfires as the High Park Fire last June engulfed a whopping 87,250 acres of the area. The fire was started by a lightning bolt and raged for 21 days. It’s the second largest recorded wildfire in Colorado history.