October 23 CalWood and Lefthand Canyon Fire Update | Press Release

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Press Releases are provided to Yellow Scene. In an effort to keep our community informed, we are now publishing some press releases in whole. This update received at 9:29 am on Friday, October 23, 2020.

Lefthand Canyon Fire 100% Contained; CalWood Fire Containment Increases

Current Situation: Firefighters took advantage of the cold front that moved into the area on Thursday to significantly increase containment on both the CalWood and Lefthand Canyon fires. In Divisions N and Z, crews worked east and west towards each other, improving and mopping up containment lines on the south side of the fire. On the north edge of the fire, crews in Divisions F and Division A also patrolled and mopped up lines that were accessible. In the steeper terrain in Division A, crews monitored as the fire slowly worked its way down the canyon towards Highway 7. The CalWood Fire is 55% contained.

On Friday, crews will continue building on yesterday’s success in increasing containment by improving and mopping up lines around most of the fire’s edge. Firefighters will also be patrolling and improving lines along contained portions of the fire’s edge. In the South St. Vrain Canyon, crews will be monitoring the fire as it backs down towards Highway 7. Other firefighters in that area will be scouting for opportunities to construct fire lines to prevent the fire’s spread up or downcanyon. Fire behavior is expected to be light to moderate through the day.

The Lefthand Canyon Fire reached 100% containment on Tuesday. Crews worked through the day to mop up and patrol containment lines. Firefighters will be assigned to patrol fire lines and make improvements as necessary.

Weather & Fuel Conditions: Cool, cloudy, and moist conditions are expected through the day Friday. Temperatures are expected to peak at 36 degrees and humidity will remain at 50% or above through the afternoon over both fires. A Fire Weather Watch is in effect over both fires from Friday night for low humidity and wind gusts to 20-25 mph on the CalWood Fire and gusts to 25-30 mph on the Lefthand Canyon Fire.

Closures and Evacuations: The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office made modifications to some evacuation orders and evacuation warnings on Thursday. For complete information on evacuations for both fires, please visit https://arcg.is/0Lq5fD, visit https://boulderoem.com, or call (303) 413-7730.

The U.S. Forest Service has a temporary closure in place for all activities on Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests lands in Grand, Clear Creek, Jefferson, Gilpin, Boulder, and Larimer counties; for more information on these emergency closures, please visit https://go.usa.gov/x7CZJ. Boulder County Parks and Open Space closed multiple properties to public use on Wednesday; for more information on these closures, please visit https://boco.org/BCPOSfireclosures.

Air Quality: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has issued an Air Quality Action Day Alert for the Colorado Front Range until at least 4pm today due to locally heavy smoke in parts of northern Boulder and southern Larimer counties in close proximity to the Calwood and Left Hand Canyon wildfires, and downwind from the East Troublesome wildfire. Please visit the CDPHE Air Quality page or find more localized information at https://airnow.gov. A smoke forecast is available for the central Front Range; please visit https://wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlooks/CentralColoradoFrontRange for more information.

Emergency Alerts: Boulder County has an emergency notification system that allows residents of the county and all cities within to be notified of emergency situations. Notifications can be received in a variety of ways, including cell and land line phones, by text and/or by email. To sign up for alerts, please visit www.Boco911Alert.com.

Temporary Flight Restrictions: Temporary Flight Restrictions are in place over the Calwood and Lefthand Canyon fires. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fires, all aircraft will be grounded until the drone is confirmed as clear of the area. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.