By Saturday afternoon, Plateau Fire north of Dolores had grown to 14,403 acres, up from 13,084 acres on Friday. Containment was raised to 45 percent, up from 30 percent.
The acreage estimate was based on GIS analysis and an infrared mapping flight about 1:11 p.m. Saturday. Much of the growth was attributed to planned firing operations designed to strengthen control lines, public information officer Hannah Welch said.
A rainstorm provided firefighters a long-awaited break Friday evening, cooling temperatures into the 60s and raising the relative humidity to about 65 percent by 9 p.m.
With the rain, came lightning.
The incident command team received reports of lightning strikes throughout the area but could not confirm whether any of them ignited fires, Welch said. Most of the lightning strikes seen from Cortez reportedly occurred between Cortez and Dolores, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
On Saturday evening, relative humidity was expected to reach as high as 80 percent. There also was a 30 percent chance of a wetting rain, which could significantly slow the fire.
The U.S. Forest Service also announced that local officials and incident management team members would hold a public meeting Sunday to update residents on the Plateau Fire and answer questions. The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Sunday at the Dolores Community Center.
On Saturday, crews continued to strengthen defense lines, using an indirect strategy of planned firing operations on east and west sides of Plateau Creek and the south side of Beaver Creek canyon.
In a briefing on Saturday morning, Rocky Mountain Team Black announced that fire crews made progress on burning a fire line on the southwestern section, Division Z, that extends from Forest Service Road 529 southwest toward McPhee Reservoir. The incident management team said it has secured the eastern section of the line and worked on Saturday to secure the section on FSR 529A that runs toward McPhee’s eastern shore.
Crews also worked Saturday to secure the western side of the fire, Division D, and inserted a Hotshot crew to build a line from where the fire’s edge meets McPhee Reservoir and connect it to a secured line on FSR 523. Farther north along FSR 523, crews worked to connect a secure section of fire line in Division D with a secure section at Calf Creek in the northeastern Division X.
On the fire’s eastern side, crews used existing roads to burn fire lines southward to connect with a secure fire line in the southeastern Division W on Dolores-Norwood Road (FSR 526). The fire line along Dolores-Norwood Road would then connect to the secure line on House Creek Road (FSR 528), completing an area of 100 percent containment.
Also on Saturday, three structure protection teams from the Front Range planned to patrol structures in the pre-evacuation area to assess their condition.
On Friday, crews took advantage of natural geographic features and roads, where they ignited planned burns in an attempt to hold indirect containment lines on the east and west sides of Plateau Creek and the south side of Beaver Creek canyon. Firefighters also tried to hold a line on the west side of the Dolores-Norwood Road north of its intersection with House Creek Road.
Planned firing operations expanded on its southwestern end, approaching to within 1.5 miles of House Creek Road. The fire was moving south and burning about 6 miles north of Dolores, down from 13 miles when it started July 22. The fire has not reached the paved House Creek Road, and crews planned to keep it north of that point and west of the Dolores-Norwood Road, Welch said Friday.
A more robust Type 2 incident management team composed of local, state and federal agencies – Rocky Mountain Team Black from Pueblo – has assumed command of the fire. This summer, the team managed the Lake Christine Fire northwest of Basalt and the Spring Creek Fire west of La Veta. It is led by incident commander Shane Greer.
Available resources included 303 personnel, 16 engines, a brush mower, four helicopters and two single-engine air tankers. Two Type 1 Hotshot crews are at the site, but because of the steep, rocky terrain, have not become engaged in a direct firefight; on Friday and Saturday, they worked to strengthen containment lines.
A helibase and spike camp were set up outside the fire’s northwest corner, and the incident command center was set up in a field near the intersection of County Road W and the Dolores-Norwood Road.
No injuries have been reported, Welch said.
The fire had been largely contained in Plateau Canyon, but high winds pushed it over control lines Wednesday in Beaver Canyon.
“It was a witch’s brew of fire conditions that caused the fire to expand rapidly to the south,” said Rob Kopack, the former Type 3 public information officer for the fire.
Montezuma County has set up a call center for information about the fire. Anyone with questions may call 970-564-4998 or 970-564-4999. If it is an emergency, call 911.
The Sheriff’s Office set up an Emergency Operations Center. Contact Vicki Shaffer or Mike Pasquin.
Jim Mimiaga and Trent Stephens, of The Journal, contributed to this article.
Community meeting
A public meeting was planned for Sunday at 6 p.m. at the Dolores Community Center, 400 Riverside Ave.
Local and incident management team members planned to provide an update on the Plateau Fire and answer residents’ questions.
