| Contacts: | Lynn Barclay 970-826-5096 |
Lightning starts wildland fires in Moffat County (07-19-10)
Craig, CO – Lightning and thunderstorms moving through northwest Colorado ignited two wildland fires in Moffat County yesterday afternoon.
The East Fork Fire was reported around 1:00 p.m., Monday and is estimated to be 200 acres. Smoke was visible as winds pushed the flames through pinyon and juniper trees on Bureau of Land Management lands. The blaze is about ten miles south of Elk Springs, Moffat County. A couple retardant drops helped slow the fire’s advance and allow firefighters on the ground to begin building fireline. Ordered to the fire were eight smokejumpers, three engines, one hand crew, and a helicopter. No structures are threatened.
The twenty-six acre J Bord Fire, ten miles northeast of Maybell was on private land. A Moffat County Sheriff’s engine and one BLM engine responded that incident. The fire made a run through sagebrush, grass and juniper and was contained by 10:30 p.m. yesterday. No structures were threatened.
Thunderstorms are expected through the rest of the week and temperatures are forecast to remain warm. The highest chance for moisture associated with the storms is Wednesday or Thursday, but may not prohibit the start of new fires. Gusty erratic winds also accompany thunderstorms which hamper fire containment and cause unpredictable fire behavior.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
455 Emerson Street Craig, CO 81625