A story published in the Durango Herald stated that the Lightner Creek Fire, about 6 miles miles northwest of downtown Durango, was 40 percent contained, thus giving hope to some of the evacuated residents whose homes are threatened by the blaze.
Unfortunately, the article — found online — was published five years ago, and was reporting on a 2012 Lightner Creek wildfire, which burned about 85 acres and drew 90 firefighters into the campaign.
The current Lightner Creek Fire is a new — and larger — fire.
The wildfire was first reported on Wednesday afternoon and has thus far burned more than 360 acres, forced the evacuation of 170 homes and drawn a declaration of a disaster emergency from Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper. According to the Durango Herald, the blaze was zero percent contained as of 3pm yesterday, June 29.
From the Durango Herald:
The fire started about 4 p.m. Wednesday in the 1200 block of Lightner Creek Road, and quickly consumed 50 acres. It is believed to have started at a house at 1255 Lightner Creek Road. Neighbors reported three loud booms and said the house was destroyed before firefighters arrived 20-30 minutes later.
A second fire was apparently started by an ember on the east side of Lightner Creek Road and it worked its way toward Perins Peak and became the larger of the two fires.
Firefighters reported some success in preventing the spread of the fire on Thursday. Five single engine air tankers, four large air tankers, one aerial supervision module, and three helicopters have been aggressively attacking the fire.
Families in the area have been evacuated to a local middle school, but the school does not allow pets, so animals are being housed at the Humane Society.
Cooler weather is expected for a few days, before the return of hot, dry conditions next week. The 120 firefighters battling the fire are reported to be “cautiously optimistic.”