Fire crews contain Cemetery Trail Fire to less than 1 acre
Officials expect to be done with 'mop-up mode' by 7 p.m. Saturday
Adam Bianchi/Courtesy photo
Around 10 p.m. Thursday night, Summit Fire & EMS responded to flames near the Summit County Archery Range. Fire officials think the fire, now called the Cemetery Trail Fire, was sparked by a lightning strike.
Crews worked through the night to contain the fire, which never exceeded 1 acre in area. As of 9 a.m., fire lines had been cut around the burn and members of the U.S. Forest Service were managing firefighting efforts. Crews from Vail Fire and Emergency Services also responded.
Winds mostly stayed between 10 and 20 mph and no spot fires occurred throughout the day, according to Adam Bianchi, a ranger with the Dillon Ranger District.
Around 1 p.m. a Chinook helicopter arrived with a water bucket and dumped 12 bucketloads of water from the Dillon Reservoir on the fire, Bianchi said.
By 4:30 p.m. crews were in “mop-up mode” to put out the final hotspots, and it’s expected the fire will be completely contained by 7 p.m. Saturday, Bianchi said.
Summit Fire & EMS/Courtesy photo
Support Local Journalism
Support Local Journalism
As a Summit Daily News reader, you make our work possible.
Summit Daily is embarking on a multiyear project to digitize its archives going back to 1989 and make them available to the public in partnership with the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection. The full project is expected to cost about $165,000. All donations made in 2023 will go directly toward this project.
Every contribution, no matter the size, will make a difference.