Copyright 2006 Denver Publishing Company
By HECTOR GUTIERREZ
Rocky Mountain News (Denver)
With June now here, Colorado’s already dangerous fire-threat level just got a little bit hotter.
That’s because winds normally kick up along the state’s Front Range and Western Slope in June, which means a spike in the wildfire hazard, according to a forecast update issued Thursday by meteorologists at the Rocky Mountain Area Coordination Center.
“Occasional wind events in June will further increase the threat for large fire activity,” according to the 2006 Seasonal Fire Potential Outlook.
The center already has predicted that the persistent dry weather during the past year makes Colorado’s Front Range and eastern Plains ripe for major wildfires this summer, similar to those that torched the state in 2002.
Jim Fletcher, manager for the Lakewood-based center, pointed out that June sometimes sees wind gusts of up to 30 mph.
“It’s primarily in the Front Range, and it can occur on the Western Slope as well,” Fletcher said.
Wind, combined with drought conditions, means Coloradans and visitors need to take even more precautions as they venture into the dry forests and plains, Fletcher said.
Authorities in Boulder and Larimer counties will announce fire restrictions effective at noon today. The restrictions, which prohibit open campfires and fireworks in unincorporated areas, will last at least through July 11 in Larimer County.
Meantime, the state’s dry and dead timber and browning plains are unlikely to get any relief in the near future. The mercury is expected to climb to about 90 degrees today, though forecasters think thunderstorms might hit the Denver area this evening.
On Saturday and Sunday, temperatures in the 90s are expected, with little chance of precipitation.
So far this year, 654 fires have scorched 150,308 acres in the Rocky Mountain area.