The High Park fire has burned to within three miles of Fort Collin, CO; I just spoke to Doug Hutchinson, the previous mayor, and he says the townspeople can see flames from their houses in town. Containment has dropped from 65% to 40% in the past 24 hours; the fire jumped the Poudre River last night.
The High Park fire has been tough. We drove up I-25 last week, nearly a week into the fire, and could see the fire from the interstate. They have contained the eastern side of the fire, for the most part, but with the extreme heat the last couple of days, the north & west lines were lost.
For over two weeks now, I have watched the plume of fire rolling east from the mountains.
I was really worried about the Estes Park fire today, but I think they have it under control. People reported that they rushed air support in for it, and with Estes Lake right there, they were able to contain it “faster.”