Wildfires that have reportedly crossed the boundary lines of the city of Colorado Springs doubled in size between Tuesday night and Monday morning.
Pushed by the incessant and hot winds in the mountainous region, the rapidly expanding fire has forced the evacuation of 32,000 people already in areas near the outskirts of the city according to CNN.
The fire that began on June 23rd in an area frequented by tourists is said to have precisely started in Waldo Canyon which is 10 miles away from Colorado Springs and 3 miles away from Manitou Springs, a small town of 5,000 people and closest to the fire.
By the late evening of June 25, however, the fire was reported to be a mile away from the Air Force Academy which is located in the outskirts of Colorado Springs.
The fires have so far engulfed more than 15,517 acres of land and shouldn't be confused with the High Park fire that began on June 9, 2012 and has to date burnt more than 87,284 acres of land.
The High Park fire is located in northern Colorado near Fort Collins in Larimer County and is already the second-largest fire in Colorado history based on total area burned.
The exact number of structures burned down by the High Park Fire has been confirmed to be 257 homes while the figures for the Waldo Canyon fire are yet to be confirmed.
There are currently three main wildfires taking place in Colorado: the Waldo Canyon Fire, the High Park Fire and the Flagstaff Fire.
All three are active and began in the month of June.
The Flagstaff Fire is dangerously approaching the city of Boulder (located northwest from Denver) and is believed to have been caused by a lightning strike on June 26. By 5 p.m. on the same day, around 300 acres were burned down and prompted people living in 26 homes to evacuate.
John Hickenlooper, Governor of Colorado, gave a news conference on the fires after visiting the hard hit areas.
"This is the worst fire season in the history of Colorado," he said during the conference.
The City of Colorado Springs has issued a map on the mandatory evacuation areas.
The map is provided by clicking here and is followed by satellite images of the High Park Fire.
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Waldo Canyon Fire (Click on photos for expanded view)
High Park Fire
View High Park Fire in a larger map
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>> Colorado Springs and the Waldo Canyon Fire (PHOTOS)
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