A pilot has died while working the Gold Mountain fire near Ouray after crashing into a reservoir, the Gunnison County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday night.
Sheriff Adam Murdie said the county received a call at 5:17 p.m. that an aircraft had crashed in Silver Jack Reservoir located in southwestern Gunnison County.
“Indications are that there was one person on board,” the sheriff’s office said.
The Montrose County Sheriff’s Office dive team later recovered the body of the pilot, the Gunnison County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday night. No other information has been released.
The pilot is the fourth firefighter killed battling wildfires across Colorado this year. Three firefighters were killed June 27 in Mesa County while battling the Snyder fire, which started in Utah and moved into Colorado.
Hot, dry weather continued Sunday as firefighters across the state raced to contain the four major Colorado fires that ignited two weeks ago and battle two new ones that started Sunday south of Steamboat Springs.
The wildfires ignited Sunday in Routt County and parts of the county south of Steamboat Springs are under emergency evacuations.
The Green Ridge fire is burning near Stagecoach Reservoir, and evacuations have been ordered south and east of the reservoir, the Routt County officials said Sunday. Other areas south of the reservoir are on preevacuation status.
The Fishhook fire is burning southeast of Steamboat Springs, about one mile southeast of the ski resort, two miles north of Highway 40. It had burned about 95 acres by 7:45 p.m. Sunday, according to officials. The fire is off Rabbit Ears Pass on Routt National Forest land, and the U.S. Forest Service said there has been a “heavy initial aerial response.” The agency said the Green Ridge fire is on private land, but may burn onto forest service land. The cause of the fires has not been released.
A high pressure system remains over western Colorado, and that means mostly sunny skies and very hot temperatures Sunday and early in the week, according to forecasters at the National Weather Service office in Grand Junction.
“Heat advisories and extreme heat warnings remain in effect for portions of the forecast area,” forecasters said Sunday morning. “Some isolated to scattered showers and storms are possible across the Four Corners, San Juans and central mountains this afternoon.”
A combination of high winds, low humidity and dry fuels are setting up for another stretch of critical fire weather conditions forecast to last through the coming days, officials fighting the Willow fire near Leadville said. That fire was 25% contained as of Sunday morning.
The high pressure system is expected to bring hot, dry, and windy conditions to the Aspen Acres fire southwest of Pueblo, officials said Sunday morning.
“We’re looking at warmer, drier conditions today,” said Brad Washa of the Alaska complex incident management team Sunday morning.
Crews continue to slow the growth of the fire, which is the seventh largest in state history and has burned 98,100 acres. It is 35% contained, up slightly from Saturday’s report, as nearly 2,000 personnel are now working the fire.
“As temperatures and winds increase in the afternoon, fire activity is again expected to increase on the west side of the fire. Fuels remain extremely receptive to fire,” officials said in their Sunday morning report.
Crews are also working on a new fire that started Thursday north of Lake City. The Elk fire is thought to be caused by lightning.
Here is a roundup of the other major fires burning in Colorado:
The National Interagency Fire Center map shows wildfires burning in Colorado.
Ferris fire
The fire in southwestern Colorado has consumed 64,369 acres and was 23% contained as of Sunday morning. It is now the ninth-largest fire in Colorado history.
Sunday afternoon, the San Miguel and Dolores County sheriff’s offices issued new evacuations for properties on the Dolores/San Miguel county line, approximately one mile east of the Dolores River Canyon rim.
The Bureau of Land Management on Saturday further restricted public access, shutting down all BLM-administered public lands south of the Dolores/San Miguel county line, east of Colorado 141 and north of County Road H.6.
Gold Mountain fire
With record heat expected in the region Sunday and early this week, fire officials working the Gold Mountain fire near Ouray are concerned about “reburn.”
The fire had scorched 35,601 acres as of Sunday morning, and containment is hovering at 5%, down slightly from Saturday.
Crews continue to secure the fire lines protecting U.S. 550 and County Road 12.
The potential for reburn is higher in the oak brush fuel type, officials said, as the shrubs shed leaf litter consumed during the initial burn. The dried out canopy could reignite with the right heat and wind conditions.
Willow fire
The fire burning west of Leadville is 33% contained and has burned 5,853 acres as of Sunday afternoon. Officials said containment has increased slightly and the fire lines along the north edge of the fire continue to hold.
The north edge of the fire is just south of Turquoise Lake, and fire crews used water drops in the area Saturday to hit hot spots in the steep terrain.
Leadville reached a high of 81 degrees Saturday, surpassing the 80-degree record set in 2003, officials said Sunday morning.
Weather remains a concern as high winds are forecast.
“You’re going to see an increase in smoke out there, and an increase in activity out there,” operations chief Nick Castro said during a weekend update about the continuing red flag warning conditions across the high country.
Elk fire
The Elk fire started Thursday by lightning and has burned nearly 350 acres in the Uncompahgre Wilderness as of Sunday morning, officials said. The fire is north of Lake City in an “extremely remote location” in Hinsdale County.
“Heavy concentrations of dead timber (70-90%) combined with relative humidity in the teens, exceptional drought, and critical fuel moistures are contributing to torching, short crown runs, and spot fires. Spotting is occurring up to three-quarter miles into heavy dead and down timber,” officials said Sunday morning. Smoke will remain visible from the Lake City and Gunnison areas.
This is a developing story that will be updated.