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Fire officials said a campfire that had not been fully extinguished is what started the fire.
TWIN LAKES, Colo. — A wildfire in Lake County that was first reported on Tuesday afternoon continued to grow.
The Interlaken Fire had burned 443 acres of Wednesday, according to U.S. Forest Service (USFS) officials. There was 0% containment of the fire, officials said. The estimate had not yet been updated on Thursday.
The fire was active for most of the day Wednesday and didn’t lay down until around 1 a.m. Thursday, according to a Facebook post made by fire officials.
The wildfire is burning in high-elevation spruce fir forests that are littered with dead and fallen trees from insect infestation, the Forest Service said.
Aviation crews continue to drop water and fire retardant to minimize the fire’s spread, officials said. There are 140 personnel assigned to fight the fire as of Thursday morning.
Firefighters on the ground are working on protecting residents’ private property, the Interlaken Historic Resort, utility infrastructure and Canada lynx habitat, fire officials said.
Weather conditions at Twin Lakes on Thursday were warm and breezy. The National Weather Service said high temperatures would be right around 80 degrees, and relative humidity was listed at 13% as of 12:30 p.m. The forecast for Friday was for high temps to be in the lower 70s with a 50% chance of thunderstorms after noon.
On Wednesday night, investigators said an abandoned campfire that had not been properly put out was the cause of the fire.
Officials said they have no leads on who left the fire unattended. The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Forest Service are asking anyone with information regarding campers with a fire near the Interlaken Resort between June 7 and June 11 to call the tip line at 303-275-5266.
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