The Six Shooter Fire burning near Bondad grew to 220 acres overnight, according to the Southern Ute Indian Tribe.
The SUIT said ground crews were able to reach 15% containment as of Wednesday morning. The cause of the fire has been determined as lightning from Saturday’s storm, which sparked several fires in the region.
The Six Shooter Fire broke out Tuesday afternoon near County Road 310, across from the landfill, on SUIT land about 15 miles south of Durango. By Tuesday evening, it had grown to 75 acres, requiring aerial crews to be diverted from other burns in the region.
A Durango Interagency Stage 3 team took command of the fire Wednesday, the SUIT said. Ground crews, including hot shots, are on scene. Air resources will remain on standby Wednesday, if needed.
“When the incident commander feels like it would be helpful to have them drop retardant or water in certain areas, they’ll make that call,” said SUIT spokeswoman Lindsay Box. “But they have quite a few ground resources they’re using at the moment making good headway.”
As of Wednesday morning, no homes were at risk, and the only structures in the area that could be potentially impacted are oil and gas facilities. Box said those facilities were closed Tuesday.
There were no evacuation or pre-evacuation notices in place as of Wednesday morning, Box said. But, residents are encouraged to sign up for CodeRED Emergency Alerts for those notices.
Smoke is visible from U.S. Highway 550 and County Road 318, which may cause health problems. The public can view air quality conditions through the tribe’s monitoring system at https://bit.ly/3ee17XN.
Multiple agencies have joined the fight against the Six Shooter Fire, including the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Southern Ute Agency Fire Management, Los Piños Fire Protection District, Durango Fire Protection District, Florida Mesa Fire Protection District and modules from the state of Colorado and Oklahoma.
The Six Shooter Fire is one of several active blazes in the region, including the East Canyon Fire west of Durango and the Loading Pen Fire north of Dolores.
A red flag warning is in effect until 8 p.m. Wednesday, at which time fire danger is expected to increase with temperatures in the 80s, wind gusts up to 35 mph and low humidity.
jromeo@durangoherald.com
