The Gold Mountain fire burning near Ouray crept over 18,000 acres on Thursday, prompting further closures and evacuation notices.
Montrose County issued a pre-evacuation notice for the area south of the P77 Road/Cimarron Road intersection and properties on P77 Road 1 mile north of the intersection.
The Cimarron State Wildlife Area has closed, as has the city of Montrose’s Buckhorn Lakes. This is in addition to evacuation notices in Ouray County that include Redstone Road, Ponderosa Village, Pecks Trailer Park and several county roads.
After igniting near Ouray, the fire has grown northeast toward Owl Creek Pass near Ridgway, prompting further evacuations in that area.
In an update on Thursday, Operations Section Chief Jeramy Dietz said a red flag warning remained in effect due to extremely dry weather and gusty winds up to 35 mph, which could lead to increased fire growth.
Dietz added that crews are focusing on protecting areas north of the fire, including Silverjack Reservoir, a popular recreation spot in the area. Water scooper aircraft are drawing from Ridgway Reservoir to drop on the fire.
The fire remains at zero percent containment. No cause has been determined yet.
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