Firefighters are working to contain a small wildfire, estimated at 1 to 1½ acres, burning west of Hermosa that started Monday afternoon.
On Tuesday, the San Juan Interagency Hotshot crew and a fire crew from the Bayfield-based Columbine Ranger District took over operations from a Los Pinos Fire crew that monitored the fire overnight, said Lorena Williams, spokesperson for the San Juan National Forest.
A Black Hawk helicopter from the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control was deployed to make water drops on the fire.
Crews are focused on containment and expect to have the fire secured by Wednesday, Williams said.
Roughly half the fire is on an open hillside, while the other half is in a drainage filled with hazardous, dead standing trees, she said. Those trees pose a significant risk to firefighters, as they can fall without warning, especially when roots are weakened by fire.
Before direct suppression could begin in that area, crews worked to mitigate the natural debris by felling unstable trees and clearing them from the fire’s edge. Efforts are now concentrated on containing the fire within the drainage.
Despite the difficult conditions, crews responded quickly after the fire was reported and have made steady progress.
“I think the community should be really proud of its local wildland firefighting workforce,” Williams said. “It’s early for a fire to kick up in heavy timber like this.”
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
jbowman@durangoherald.com
