Sunset behind the smoke at the Waldo Canyon fire near Colorado Springs.
/ Courtesy: Robie Blair
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- The Waldo Canyon Fire has burned a number of homes in northwest Colorado Springs, according to U.S. Forest Service officials.
The fire, which had been confined to the canyon and surrounding areas for three days, made it over the foothills Tuesday afternoon thanks in large part to high winds and record-high temperatures. Winds from the southwest pushed the fire northeast into the Mountain Shadows neighborhood, where a few homes burned. Fire officials did say a number of homes were saved but didn't have exact numbers or locations.
Colorado Springs Fire Chief Richard Brown said the fire simply picked up too fast for crews to hold containment lines.
Officials have said nobody has been hurt so far. Everyone living west of I-25 and north of Garden of the Gods Road was evacuated before the homes burned. Those residents, along with residents in Cascade, Green Mountain Falls, Chipita Park and southern neighborhoods at the Air Force Academy, brings the total number of evacuees to about 32,000.
Red Cross shelters are set up at Cheyenne Mountain High School, the Southeast YMCA, Lewis-Palmer High School and Springs Church in Colorado Springs.
El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa said 800 firefighters from different areas around Colorado will join the 600 already battling fire, as well as C-130 aircrafts.
Highway 24 remains closed from Cave of the Winds to Crystola. The latest estimate on the fire was 6,200 acres.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forKXRM