From the Incident Management Team:
Fire crews will continue to construct fire line and secure the entire fire perimeter. The Indian Gulch Fire continues to burn on slopes above US Highway 6, which will remain closed throughout the day. Crews will extend burnout operations to the east along US Highway 6. Air resources will support ground crews as needed.
Fire crews made significant progress in fighting the Indian Gulch Fire, which has burned 1,502 acres in unincorporated Jefferson County, west of the city of Golden (correction from last night's post of 1,700 acres). Crews extended existing fire lines along the southeast and eastern perimeters of the fire to include the northern and much of the western perimeters. Burnout operations were conducted along US Highway 6 to assist in securing the southern perimeter of the fire. The Indian Gulch Fire is estimated to be 77% contained. There are currently no structures threatened.
“Firefighting is a physically hard and psychologically demanding job,” said Incident Commander Rowdy Muir. “The firefighters on the Indian Gulch Fire have had to deal with steep slopes and unsure footing within a complex smoky environment. The success in containing the fire goes to them and we are proud of their efforts.”
At the request of Incident Commander Muir some air resources available on the Indian Gulch Fire were directed to support firefighting efforts in Douglas County, Colorado where the Franktown Fire has burned 1,600 acres.
A stage 2 fire ban is currently in place for all areas of unincorporated Jefferson County to include all federal lands.
Fire statistics:
Date started: March 20, 2011, 10:15 am
Acreage: 1,502
Structures Threatened: 0
Air Resources: 1 Type 1 Helicopter, 1 Type 2 Helicopter, 1 Type 3 Helicopter, 2 Single Engine Air Tankers, 1 Fixed Wing Heavy Tanker.
Containment: 77%
Incident Information is also available on Inciweb (http://www.inciweb.org).
