As of Friday evening, the Black Ridge Fire was 80 percent contained, but no personnel had been released as crews face critical fire weather conditions Saturday, officials said.
The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for most of western Colorado for Saturday, including Durango – where Saturday’s forecast calls for a high temperature of 87 degrees and wind gusts up to 35 mph.
A red flag warning means that fires could spread quickly because of low humidity, high temperatures and strong winds.
There is an ongoing burn ban in southern La Plata County – south of U.S. Highway 160 – and whenever a red flag warning is issued, the Durango Fire Protection District puts a burn ban in place.
One helicopter is assigned to the fire, and it made several bucket drops Friday, Megan Graham, La Plata County spokeswoman and public information officer for the fire, said in a news release.
“The crews were helped a lot by the humidity recovery last (Thursday) night,” Graham said.
Pre-evacuation orders for nearby residents were lifted Thursday evening, and Graham said Friday evening that “oil and gas operations in the area have returned to normal.”
There were about 70 firefighters on the fire, and plans were underway to reduce the number of crews when it is possible.
With critical fire conditions forecast through the weekend and dry thunderstorms expected Sunday and Monday, initial fire-attack resources are prepared to handle any new fires, Graham said.