LOS ANGELES, Aug 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) – A wildfire in the U.S. state of Colorado doubled its size and is threatening a popular hiking spot, the local authorities said, adding, the fate of the tourist attraction is unclear.
The blaze, dubbed Grizzly Creek Fire, was first reported Monday afternoon and made a major run late Thursday night, growing to 13,441 acres (54.4 square kilometres), according to InciWeb, an interstate incident information system.
Colorado Governor, Jared Polis, visited the Incident Command Centre for the Grizzly Creek Fire Friday, where he said getting the aggressive fire under control was the top national priority.
“I was actually just informed that the Grizzly Creek Fire is the top fire priority in the nation right now, ” said Polis, at an online press conference.
What the local officials worried most is Hanging Lake, a National Natural Landmark in the United States and a popular tourist destination, with over 180,000 visitors in 2018.
“Right now we don’t know the disposition of Hanging Lake,” said Scott Fitzwilliams, Forest Supervisor for the White River National Forest. “We know there was fire around it. We hope to get up and take a look at it today and as soon as we know we’ll let folks know.”
In addition to this blaze, the Pine Gulch Fire, in the state, sparked by lightning on July 31 continued to grow and is now of the largest wildfires in Colorado history.
As of Friday, the Pine Gulch Fire torched 73,381 acres (296.9 square kilometres) with only seven percent containment.– NNN-AGENCIES
