The official tally of homes burned in the High Park fire is now 112, making the blaze still moving west of Fort Collins the most devastating loss of property in Northern Colorado, Larimer County sheriff's executive officer Nick Christensen said.
"I knew this was a big, big fire," Christensen said. "I was hopeful it was going to be a lower number. But it's not, and it's going to grow."
Structure assessment crews will continue their work inside the bounds of the 52,000-acre fire that started Saturday with a lightning strike in Paradise Park.
Christensen said the homes lost burned in the first couple of days of the fire. "Structure protection came after life-safety so we lot a lot of homes in the firest few days of the fire," Christensen said. "The last few days, structure protection has been successful. We have not lost additional homes."
The homes lost include: one each in Solider Canyon, Cloudy Pass and Picnic Rock; five in Pine Acres; 21 in Stratton Park; 17 in Poudre Canyon; three in Spring Valley; one on Old Flowers Road; 40 in Whale Rock, 12 in Paradise Park, two in Tip Top; and seven in Rist Canyon.
"These are stories," Christensen said of the tally. "Every one represents a family who has lost their home."
He said the home of a Sheriff's department employeeburned, and it's likely several fire fighters are among those who lost homes.
Assessment crews will be working in Lawrence Creek, Redstone Canyon, Buckhorn, Stove Prairie and other Rist Canyon neighborhoods tomorrow, he said.
At 52,000-acres High Park fire now is the third largest in recorded Colorado history, behind Hayman at 137,760 acres and Missionary Ridge, 71,739 acres. Both occurred during the drought of 2002.
In terms of homes burned, High Park also is the third most destructive, behind 2010's Fourmile Canyon fire, which burned 169 west of Boulder, and Hayman which burned 133 west of Colorado Springs.
Authorities confirmed today that 112 homes have been lost to the High Park fire, The number is expected to rise as Crews continue to survey the damage of the 50,000-acre blaze.
"These are stories," said Larimer County Sheriff's spokesman Nick Christensen said of the tally. "Every one represents a family who has lost their home."
He said a Sheriff's Department employee lost a home, and it's likely several fire fighters are among the victims.
About 195 firefighters and heavy helicopters are attacking the spot fire burning on Sheep Mountain near the Glacier View Meadows neighborhood north of the Cache la Poudre River. Wind-driven embers sparked the fire Thursday afternoon. Their focus is on structure protection
"That is a great concentration of expertise,
A helicopter flies through Poudre Canyon on Thursday as flames scorch the forest south of the river. (Karl Gehring, The Denver Post)
About 1,400 firefighters are battling the fire today, concentrating resources on the north and west flanks to protect homes.
Firefighters are worried by the spot fire — now about 200 acres — said Bill Hahnenberg, the incident commander. If unchecked, the spot fire could gain momentum and make a run at Glacier View.
"We're working hard on the spot fire across the Poudre Canyon," Hahnenberg said. "Mother Nature is being very difficult."
Stormy weather today and this weekend are not necessary the friend of firefighters, because
A Cortez Volunteer Fire/Rescue tanker refills before heading back to the High Park Fire . Locals near LaPorte are show their support with a thank you sign. (Jessica Fender, The Denver Post)
Dave Lipson, a fire weather meteorologist assigned to the High Park effort, said today's brief thunderstorm fed the blaze, much more than the brief shower dampened it.
Storms are expected to move out Sunday, leaving "another hurdle for us to jump" on Monday and Tuesday, with dry weather and wind gusts up to 50 mph, he said.
High humidity is expected to return Wednesday and Thursday to help the fight, he said.
The terrain near the Glacier View spot fire is extreme, including numerous steep pitches and gullies, and fire fuels are abundant, including large patches of beetle-killed timber.
Five Type 1 hot shot crews are concentrating on the troublesome area today, with "a goal
A helicopter flies through the Cache La Poudre Canyon as flames from a wildfire scorch the forest south of the river, near Fort Collins, Colo., Thursday afternoon, June 14, 2012. (Karl Gehring, The Denver Post)
"We are going to overcome," Hahnenberg said, "by being smart, aggressive and persistent."
Meanwhile, the eastern flank of the fire, closest to the city of Fort Collins, is "in really good shape," Hahnenberg said.
Crews will continue to patrol and monitor the eastern boundary where Hahnenberg said "there is very little heat."
The quiet nature of the fire on its east side will allow firefighters to concentrate elsewhere, especially the worrisome west side.
An additional 200 evacuations were ordered late last night for residents in Glacier View Meadows.
The immediate evacuation order was sent out at about 11 p.m. for the 9th, 10th and 11th filings of the subdivision, including the area east from Eiger Road to Rams Horn Mountain Road and north from the Mount Blanc Guardian Peak area to the north end of Mount Everest Drive, according to the Larimer County Sheriff's Office.
"Residents should begin the evacuation process immediately," the notification said.
The additional evacuation was "driven by increased activity in the spot fire," officials said.
The fire jumped the Cache la Poudre River at Stevens Gulch Thursday afternoon, a natural barrier where firefighters had hoped to contain the blaze.
No additional evacuations are currently anticipated, but the rest of the Glacier View Meadows area remains on alert.
Officials do not anticipate reopening Cloudy Pass, Mill Canyon or Soldier Canyon today.
There are scattered showers and a few thunderstorms in the fire area this morning. Rainfall should be minimal, however, and the thunderstorms could whip up winds to 30 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
Weather in the area should settle down after 9 a.m., but the chance — 30 percent — for showers and thunderstorms returns this afternoon. The high temperature in the area today should top out in the upper 70s.
The High Park fire, which started Saturday and was sparked by a lightning strike, is currently at 52,000 acres with 15 percent containment, according to the fire command.
The fire grew about 2,000 acres on Thursday, it was the lowest daily growth rate since it started.
The current cost of fighting the fire is $7.2 million. About 2,600 notifications to local residents have been sent out since the fire started, and 1,187 of those notifications have been lifted, according to the sheriff's office.
A total of 48 structures have been confirmed destroyed, the number is likely to go up.
The west side of the fire zone remains active as the blaze pushes through heavy beetle kill strands of timber. There was a brief rain in the area last night.
Containment lines on the southeast and northeast corners of the fire are holding.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
