Colorado Wildfire Forces 1,200 Evacuations; Cause Of Inferno Unknown

About 1,200 Colorado residents have been ordered to evacuate due to a fast-moving wildfire near the site of a destructive 2021 blaze, Boulder police said Saturday.

Protected wildland is burning near the Table Mesa neighborhood and the National Center for Atmospheric Research, police said on Twitter. Authorities are calling it the NCAR fire.

The fire is in an area where a blaze destroyed 1,000 homes last year in unincorporated Boulder County and suburban Superior and Louisville.

Eldorado Canyon State Park has been closed and authorities have ordered people who are hiking or climbing in the area to evacuate. University of Colorado Boulder Police are evacuating the south campus and police blocked westbound traffic on roads near the blaze.

The fire started around 3 p.m. and an Emergency Operations Center was activated, Boulder police said. Emergency alerts have been sent to cellphones within a 1/4 mile (0.4 kilometer) radius of the research center.

“Message is to EVACUATE area due to fast moving wildfire #boulder,” police said.

There was no immediate information on the cause of the blaze or its size.

The skies are clear and the temperature was about 73 degrees (23 degrees Celsius) with wind at about 25 mph (40 kph).