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Wildfire sets sights on Boulder as wind picks up

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Patrick Glynn, 17, left, waters down the backyard as he his father Joe and brother Jack watch a firefighting helicopter take off with a load of water as it fights a wildfire burning west of Boulder, Colo., on Thursday, Sept. 9, 2010. The Glynns soaked down their yard and house for protection from blowing embers as high winds fanned the nearby wildfire. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)
AP | AP

BOULDER – A Colorado wildfire that already has destroyed 170 homes showed no signs of relenting Thursday as wind gusts of up to 60 mph threatened to drive the flames from the foothills to the west and into the heart of Boulder, where some residents were warned to be ready to flee.

“The wind event tonight, we could be off to the races,” said Rob Bozeman, field observer with the Boulder Mountain Fire Protection District.

Officials worried about a repeat of the devastation in the foothills, where neighborhoods once filled with million-dollar homes and scenic mountain cabins have become piles of smoking rubble. On one lot, all that survived was a tennis court. On others, all that’s left are crumbling, ash-covered foundations.



Authorities told residents on the west side of Boulder to be prepared to evacuate if the wildfire moves into town, urging people to remove lawn furniture, brush and propane tanks that could fuel the fire. The city also was mowing grass in open spaces to cut down on potential fuel, and telling residents to do the same.

The city encouraged residents to gas up and park their cars pointed toward the road for a speedy getaway, wet down yards and vegetation and pack up important documents, medication and other items in case they have to flee.



Boulder is a city of about 100,000 people that is home to the University of Colorado and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, a federal laboratory best known for running the atomic clock that’s used to maintain the official U.S. time.

Authorities said the biggest fire danger was on the northern portion of Broadway, one of Boulder’s main thoroughfares. The federal lab is on Broadway farther south, and the edge of the campus is on the eastern side of the street. Many sorority and fraternity houses are on the western side.

“This is absolutely a precaution. But it’s an active fire. High winds are expected,” said emergency management team spokesman Dan Rowland.

This isn’t the first time that Boulder has faced a wildfire threat. The city has mountain parks and abundant public open space considered potential trouble spots when fires have started in the mountains. A January 2009 wildfire crept up to Boulder’s northern outer edges, but the city escaped unscathed.

Sprinklers were running in the yards in parts of west Boulder, and people were putting bags in cars Thursday evening.

Joe Glynn was hosing down his yard in northwest Boulder and his 9-year-old son, Daniel, sprayed water on city open space next to their lot. His family was packing bags and taking other steps in case they have to flee, but Glynn – who has witnessed two other wildfires – said he will stay behind and protect his home of 19 years.

“I’m going to stand on the roof with a hose if necessary,” he said.

In a neighborhood further south, Peter Cowan was gathering his credit cards, financial papers and pictures.

“I got the warning,” Cowan said. “I’m not in a panic, but I’m not going to ignore it.”

The preparations in Boulder reflect the ferocity of the wildfire since it broke out Monday and spread over a 10-square-mile area. It has since become one of the most destructive fires in Colorado, destroying more homes than any other blaze in state history.

About 3,500 people have been out of their homes for four days, and some have been frustrated with a lack of information about what was happening behind fire lines because they couldn’t do more to help. Some have gotten around roadblocks by hiking and biking in to check on their homes, and an unknown number who got back into homes decided to stay and hunker down.

Lee McCormack made a trip to his house early Thursday but was stopped at a roadblock in the afternoon. McCormack, who was riding a bicycle, had planned to get more belongings, including his car and his wife’s favorite laundry detergent, but couldn’t talk an officer into letting him through.

“It’s shut down. It doesn’t matter how much you plead,” McCormack. “I gave the cop a Power Bar and he still wouldn’t let me up there.”

Authorities are investigating whether a vehicle crashing into a propane tank started the fire. A recording of a 911 call and other communications released by the sheriff’s office chronicles reports of flames after the collision jumping to trees.

In steep canyons about five miles west of Boulder, firefighters were trying to secure fire lines. But the powerful wind gusts in the forecast could spread the fire beyond the 20-mile-long perimeter.

Winslow Robertson, the operations chief for the fire, estimated firefighters have been able to contain 45 percent of the blaze. He said no more structures were lost Thursday.

Houses in the area range from million-dollar sprawling homes with tennis courts and swimming pools to more modest ranch-style homes with wooden decks, some of which survived another fire in 1989. Homes are nestled off ridges and steep mountains.

Some residents stayed behind to fight the fire on their own, including a man who used his tractor to scoop up flames and save the children’s summer camp his family operates.

The area also includes the historic town of Gold Hill, home to an Old West grocery store and structures once used for stagecoach stops. Crews managed to spare it.

Nine people had been reported missing in the fire zone, but sheriff’s Cmdr. Rick Brough said they all have been accounted for.

The reported loss of homes surpasses that of the 2002 Hayman fire in southern Colorado, the most destructive in state history. It destroyed 133 homes and 466 outbuildings on 138,000 acres of more sparsely populated area.

Fire managers said as many 700 firefighters and support personnel and seven air tankers were assigned to fight the fire, considered the nation’s top firefighting priority.

Gov. Bill Ritter said Thursday the state would add $200,000 to the $5 million he earlier authorized to help with firefighting costs. He also directed the state Division of Emergency Management to coordinate applications for federal assistance that may be available to communities, businesses and homeowners.

It’s a busy end to a relatively quiet fire season. Nationwide, about 2.6 million acres have burned this summer, about 50 percent less than the 10 year average, said Ken Frederick, spokesman for the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.

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Associated Press Writer Ivan Moreno contributed to this report.


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