Colorado has undoubtedly suffered from the most persistent and severe wildfires this season; approximately 115,099 acres, or 180 square miles of land, have been lost throughout the state.
Fourteen wildfires have burned since June 10, causing extensive property damage and displacing thousands of residents. Seven of the fires are still active: East Peak, Black Forest (contained but still burning), Royal Gorge, Wild Rose, Lillis Lane, West Fork, and Lime Gulch.
The most destructive fire is the West Fork Complex, which is the product of three wildfires: the Papoose Fire, the Windy Pass Fire, and the West Fork Fire. According to the DenverPost.com, the West Fork Complex fire started June 5 in southern Colorado and has since burned nearly 97,000 acres. Most of the evacuations were lifted, and U.S. 160 and Colorado 149 have reopened, however only 4 percent of the fire has been contained. The fire is so massive that it can be seen from space and "smoke reached European airspace by June 24th," notes NASA.
The Black Forest Wildfire, which began June 11, has burned around 16,000 acres of land and destroyed over 500 homes, mainly in the Colorado Springs area.
Over 100 residents in Jefferson County have been placed on evacuation standby due to a new blaze named the Willow Bend fire which is burning on the east face of Long Scraggy Peak. The fire is roughly 2 acres, authorities said.
The East Fork fire, which started June 15 about 30 miles southeast of Montrose, has burned 447 acres and is 15 percent contained. A total of 287 firefighters have been deployed, including nine engines, two dozers, three water tenders and three helicopters.
A number of other blazes are almost completely contained including the Big Meadows Wildfire, the East Peak fire and the Ox Cart fire.
Experts link the devastating wildfires to the exceptionally harsh drought conditions, reports the Washington Post. Although Colorado has seen slightly more moisture since the fires began, the heat of summer appears to be keeping the risk of wildfires high.