JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — The U.S. Forest Service will close nearly 1 million acres of national forest at midnight Wednesday because of extreme fire danger along the front range.
The closure covers all national forest in Boulder, Larimer, Gilpin, Jefferson and Clear Creek counties. A map of the closure can be found here. The U.S. Forest Service said the closure will be evaluated daily and will change when conditions improve.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Forest Service said humans start 90 percent of wildfires. With seven wildfires raging in Colorado, the U.S. Forest Service said it cannot risk another fire.
“We have seven large wildfires and we just can’t afford to have any more,” said Reid Armstrong. “Conditions are historically dry and we just can’t take the risk.”
Under the closure, no members of the public are allowed to recreate in national forests deemed off limits by the U.S. Forest Service.