A wildfire that originated in California has now spread to more than 8,000 acres in less than 24 hours, forcing more than 3,000 evacuations on Sunday. The CalWood Fire began burning in Boulder County on Saturday and quickly grew to 8,788 acres. Boulder County Sheriff’s Office Division Chief Mike Wagner said it is already the largest blaze in the county’s history. Wagner said the causes for both blazes in Boulder County remained under investigation, but the area has experienced “critically dry” conditions for weeks. He added that efforts to combat the fires have been hampered by the weather.
The CalWood Fire is located just 50 miles southeast of the Cameron Peak Fire, the largest in Colorado’s history and the first to burn more than 200,000 acres, which was 62% contained on Sunday. In addition,the East Troublesome Fire north of Hot Sulphur Springs, Colo., grew to 12,655 acres at 5% containment.
The entire state of Colorado is experiencing drought conditions for the first time since 2013, with nearly 60% in extreme drought or worse, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
