A fire in Moffat County that shut down Highway 40 and prompted evacuations last Thursday is now 50 to 70 percent contained, at last report. The fire grew to approximately 7,800 acres based on mapping of the fire from helicopters. Cooler temperatures and moisture are reported to have helped slow the fire over the weekend. Highway 40 reopened on Friday. The fire started
around noon on Thursday
and grew from 500 acres to 2,180 acres within 30-minutes that afternoon prompting the Highway closure and mandatory evacuations of residents and hunters. As of
Thursday night
, 25 to 30 residences were threatened as well as oil and gas structures, a communications tower, and a Federal Aviation Administration tower. Strong winds were to blame for the rapid spread of the blaze that grew to 5,200 acres by Friday.
