The Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s Office reports that firefighters have been actively battling the Harvest Fire that started August 14th and the Deserado Fire that started August 16th around the clock this week. The Harvest Fire was reported on late Monday afternoon as a new fire about 20 miles southwest of Meeker off Piceance Creek south of County Road 5. It was initially estimated as around 40 acres in size when crews from BLM and Meeker Fire arrived on-scene. It could be seen for miles as it produced a significant amount of smoke and quickly grew to over 70 acres. 16 firefighters were the initial response from the BLM and Meeker Volunteer Fire Department. A Type 3 Incident Management Team took over command on Tuesday around 11:30am and the fire was reported that day as having grown to 150 acres. Incident Commander Brandon Voegtle reported on Tuesday that full containment was expected within a few days and that crews would continue to prioritize limiting impacts to values at risk, including oil and gas infrastructure in the area. Crews were making great progress on the Harvest Fire on Wednesday holding it at 160 acres when a call came in for a new fire requiring the closure of Rio Blanco County Road 65. The Deserado Fire was also started by lightning as a thunderstorm traveled through the area, located 8 miles east of Rangely off Country Road 65. As crews arrived on scene, the fire had rapid growth and reached over 1000 acres the first night. The White River Type 3 Incident Management Team assigned to the Harvest Fire assumed command of both fires and multiple resources supported the efforts, including air resources to keep the fire progression in check as more resources arrived. The Deserado Fire was mapped at 1099 acres by aircraft on August 17th. It continues to burn in grass and brushy fuel types. Risk of new starts continues as weather still includes scattered showers and thunderstorms. As of last report, Rio Blanco County Road 65 remains closed to through traffic though it is open to fire and mine personnel.
