(COLORADO SPRINGS) — The Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) is investigating a wildland fire in southwest Colorado Springs near Mount Muscoco. CSFD first tweeted about the Four Corners Fire at 6:10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 22. No evacuations have been ordered at this time.
According to Captain Mike Smaldino with CSFD, the fire started at around 1:45 a.m. on Saturday. At around 7:26 a.m. CSFD tweeted that 24 firefighters were hiking into the area. Smaldino said the hike could be up to two hours in length for crews to reach the fire, which is unknown in size.
“It is going to be a red flag today, so we are definitely worried about the weather and we want to make sure that we have enough resources,” said Smaldino. “So it might seem like we have a lot of people here, or at least a lot of people there initially going up, but the idea though is, we hit any of these fires fast and hard, and as quick as we can, just to make sure there is no threat to the area.”
According to Smaldino, other resources have been called in to assist with the Four Corners Fire including, the State, the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control which has 10 personnel on scene, and five additional personnel will be provided by the Forest Service.
“So this is that collaborative effort that we always talk about, we have city resources, state resources, county resources that will be coming, and even federal from the U.S. Forest Service,” said Smaldino.
CSFD also requested a Multi-Mission aircraft from the Denver area. “That is an aircraft that is going to be able to fly over, actually see the heat signature of the fire and give us a good estimated size,” said Smaldino.
The Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) also tweeted on Saturday at 8:20 a.m. that it is on “Priority Dispatch Status. Please only call 911 for life threatening emergencies.”
North Cheyenne Cañon Park and Helen Hunt Falls will be closed Saturday, due to the fire. CSFD also said a Red Flag Warning is in effect from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and to use caution with all outdoor activities.
