A Colorado prison has been evacuated as one of the state’s largest ever wildfires continues to grow, with officials warning residents in remote areas to prepare for immediate departure.
The Lee Fire has already charred more than 167 square miles (433 square kilometers) across Garfield and Rio Blanco counties, with mountain communities already under evacuation orders. Only six percent of the blaze has been contained.
Gusty winds and low humidity are exacerbating the inferno. However, no injuries or structural damage have been reported.
All 179 incarcerated people were safely removed from the Rifle Correctional Center on Saturday “out of an abundance of caution,” the Colorado Department of Corrections said in a statement. They were temporarily relocated about 150 miles (240 kilometers) away to the Buena Vista Correctional Complex, the department said.
The Lee Fire, churning through trees and brush about 250 miles (400 kilometers) west of Denver, is now the sixth-largest single fire in the state’s history, according to the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control.
More than a thousand firefighters are battling the blaze, working to keep the flames to the west of Colorado 13 and north of County Road 5, officials said.
Health officials issued air quality warnings related to smoke from the Lee Fire and the 23-square-mile (60-square-kilometer) Elk Fire burning just to the east.
In Southern California, crews reached 62 percent containment on the eight-square-mile (20-square-kilometer) Canyon Fire that forced evacuations and destroyed seven structures after breaking out Thursday near the Los Angeles County and Ventura County line.
Three firefighters have been injured, including a battalion chief who was seriously hurt when his pickup truck rolled over in steep terrain.
The Gifford Fire, California’s largest blaze so far this year, has scorched at least 180 square miles (466 square kilometers) of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties since erupting on August 1. It was 21 percent contained on Sunday.
