- Structures: No structures have been lost or damaged. Forty-six residences and 81 other structures are threatened.
- Fire size: 6,072 acres and 35 percent contained
- Location: 16 miles southeast of Meeker
- Start date July 29, 2018
- Cause unknown and under investigation
- Total personnel: 474
Announcement—Open House tomorrow at the Incident Command Post: Meet the Southern Area Incident Management Gold Team to learn how it is assisting with the Cabin Lake Fire. Guided tours will be this Sunday, August 19, 2-4 p.m., at the Incident Command Post (ICP). The ICP is located at Lake Avery near the intersection of County Roads 8 and 115/82. Follow the signs to ICP. This will give you a behind-the-scenes view of how an incident management team operates.
Reminder: U.S. Forest Service White River National Forest and Bureau of Land Management closures are in effect. Check White River National Forest’s website for updates www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/whiteriver/alerts-notices.
Previous operational period: The Cabin Lake Fire had minimal fire spread throughout the day. This allowed firefighters to improve containment and alternate lines near Smith Gulch toward County Road 10. Crews mopped up—extinguishing or removing burning material along or near the control line, felling snags or moving logs so they won’t roll downhill—along County Road 10. Hand crews established a fireline along the southeastern flank of the fire and dozer line was constructed along the southern edge of the fire.
Planned action: The fire received .5 inches of rain during the early morning hours, which will reduce fire behavior on all sides. Firefighters will be monitoring current control lines and reducing any hazards—living or dead vegetation—that may have compromised containment lines around the fire. Lightning is a concern so firefighters will be monitoring for any sleeper fires in and around the Cabin Lake Fire. Sleeper fires are when lightning hits a tree and may smolder for several days before potentially causing the tree to ignite adjacent vegetation. The structure protection group continues to actively conduct assessments and structure preparation in the fire area.
Smoke impacts: Colder temperatures overnight resulted in smoke settling in the White River Valley. For air quality and health advisory information, please visit www.colorado.gov/airquality/wildfire.aspx.
Fire weather: Higher humidity and rain will assist crews with containment efforts. Gusty, erratic winds are possible throughout the day.
Restrictions and closures
- The Buford-New Castle Road remains closed at the intersection of County Road 10 and County Road 17 and south to the turnoff to the Meadow Lake Campground (Forest Service Road 601).
- County Road 10 starting at the intersection of County Road 10 and County Road 17.
- An emergency area closure remains in place on the Blanco Ranger District of the White River National Forest—www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/whiteriver/alerts-notices. All trailheads and campgrounds in the South Fork White River drainage are closed.
- A temporary flight restriction remains in effect http://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_8_7240.html.