Some residents in northwest Colorado have decided to voluntarily evacuate as two wildfires threaten the small town of Meeker.
The town is home to roughly 2,300 residents and is surrounded by public lands.
On August 2, lightning started two fires: the Lee Fire and the Grease Fire. The two fires eventually merged, and the blaze is now known as the Lee Fire.
It has burned about 45,000 acres and is 0% contained.
Burning roughly 15 miles away is the Elk Fire, which has scorched roughly 14,250 acres. The fire was also sparked by lightning on August 2.
Mandi Etheridge, Meeker town administrator, told the Scripps News Group that the fires have already destroyed property.
“A lot of it is Bureau of Land Management and US Forest Service property, but there is some private property interspersed through all of that, and our local fire team has done an incredible job at trying to save structures,” Etheridge said. “There have been some houses saved, some houses not saved.”
On Wednesday, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis mobilized the Colorado National Guard to support response efforts for the Lee and Elk Fires.
People who live in the area are no strangers to fires, but these fires have definitely created concern.
“I've lived in Meeker for just over 20 years. Obviously, there has been wildfires in our surrounding area in northwest Colorado, but nothing quite this impactful for our community,” Etheridge said.
