FORT GARLAND, Colo. — New mandatory evacuation orders were issued Friday night for more residents in the area of the growing Spring Fire in southern Colorado.
Residents of the following areas were told to leave their homes:
- Tres Valles
- Paraise Acres
- Raspberry Mountain
- Pine Haven
- Cuchara Valley
Highway 12 in the region was closed Friday night.
The raging fire exploded to 33,956 acres by late Friday according to the fire incident management team.
Earlier it forced the closure of a longer stretch of U.S. 160, the Colorado Office of Emergency Management said.
Hot, windy, extremely dry conditions are fueling the rapid growth of the wildfire.
Some structures have been burned by the wildfire. There were reports that homes were lost.
The fire is east of Fort Garland — about 160 miles south of Denver — is 0 percent contained since being reported Wednesday.
RELATED: Colorado fires
The Colorado Department of Transportation closed a 38-mile stretch of U.S. 160 between Fort Garland and Walsenburg.
CDOT closed CO 160 overnight due to the Spring Creek Fire. The closure is between Ft Garland and Walsenburg (mileposts 258 to 294). No estimated time of reopening. #springcreekfire pic.twitter.com/phAIQKi99e
— CDOT (@ColoradoDOT) June 29, 2018
The fire initially forced the evacuation of about 350 primary and vacation homes in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. All roads leading into the Forbes Park and Wagon Creek subdivisions are closed.
Pre-evacuation orders are in place for the towns of La Veta, Cuchara and south of U.S. 160 in the Fort Garland area.
A shelter has been set up at the Blanca Fort Garland Community Center at 17591 E. Highway 160 in Blanca.
A shelter for large animals at the La Veta 4H barn remained open. A secondary location for residents to take their animals has been established at the Las Animas County Fairgrounds in Trinidad.
