GRAND COUNTY, Colo. — The Williams Fork Fire in Grand County was an estimated 11,992 acres as of Thursday morning and 5% contained.
The fire has seen minimal growth this week, as 345 crewmembers were working the fire Thursday.
A break in the weather with more humidity — but still no measurable rainfall — allowed crews to make progress Wednesday by adding more containment and fire control measures.
The weather was expected to dry out again over the next week, officials said, though thunderstorms were in the forecast for Thursday.
Officials will give an update on the fire at 5 p.m. Thursday on the Williams Fork Fire Facebook page.
The Arapaho National Forest says the fire investigation team is asking the public for help in getting information about the start of the fire, which was caused by humans. Officials are asking anyone who was in the Williams Fork area the night of Aug. 13 or morning of Aug. 14 and has photos of the area where the fire started to email them to SM.FS.usfsarp@usda.gov.
Anyone else with information can call 307-745-2392, option 5, and leave a name and number so law enforcement can call back.
The U.S. Forest Service has closed a large area west of Winter Park and Fraser, including roads, trails and campgrounds. All access to the Church Park is closed, including Forest Service Road 133, Forest Service Road 139, County Road 30, County Road 3 (with exemption for mill workers), and County Road 50 starting at Young Life Camp, according to county officials.
The Sugarloaf Campground and South Fork Campground were under mandatory evacuation orders when the fire was first reported and have been closed since. County Road 50, County Road 505, County Road 73, Aspen Canyon, Morgan Gulch, and Henderson Mil are under pre-evacuation notice.
To see an evacuation map, click here. Residents in the area can sign up for evacuation notices through the Grand County Code RED program.
As of Thursday morning, there were no evacuation orders for residential areas in Fraser Valley.
The Williams Fork Fire is one of four major fires, and several smaller fires, currently burning in Colorado. Click here for more Denver7 coverage of the wildfires.
