The city of Colorado Springs is continuously falling victim to the expanding Waldo Canyon blaze that has burned 18,500 acres and displaced more than 36,000 people to date.
Residents of Manitou Springs and Woodland Park as well as part of the United States Air Force Academy have also been evacuated to the fire that began last Saturday, June 23rd.
The City of Colorado Springs yesterday re-issued a map of the mandatory evacuation area which can be found below.
Firefighters' Battle Against Fire
The Waldo Canyon fire continues to rage on and the fight that firefighters have been putting on should be aided by better weather on Thursday according to the U.S. Forest service.
Fire Containment
5 percent of the fire has been contained and as far as predictions go, the fire could be under "full control" by mid-July the Forest service added.
Fatalities
There have been no confirmed deaths so far.
Home & Structure Damages
According to the Denver Post, 300 homes or more have been burned down so far with heavy damage to the city subdivision of Mountain Shadows
The fire has burned down various structures including the Colorado Springs Flying W Ranch landmark built back in 1953.
Cause of Fire
Although initially the cause of the fire was thought to be lightning, further investigations by local government officials and the FBI may give reason to believe that the fire may have started by an arsonist.
Help & Donations
Donations to those affected by the Waldo Canyon, Flagstaff, High Park and other fires could be directed by contacting the following agencies found in this domain:
https://www.helpcoloradonow.org/
The Denver Broncos have pledged $50,000 in donations for the fire victims.
Red Cross Shelters
Cheyenne Mountain High School (1200 Cresta Road, Colorado Springs, CO)
Southeast YMCA (2190 Jet Wing Drive, Colorado Springs, CO)
Lewis Palmer High School (1300 Higby, Monument, CO 80132)
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.
High Park Fire
The High Park fire west of Fort Collins in northern Colorado has been active since June 9 and has burned down over 87,284 acres of land.
So far 257 structures have been destroyed.
And containing the fire has cost the state over $31.5 million.
The High Park Fire is the second largest fire in Colorado History in terms of land area burned.
Flagstaff Fire
The Flagstaff Fire has burned 230 acres of land as of June 27 and has prompted people in 26 homes along Bison Drive to evacuate.
Pre-evacuation orders were announced on June 27 including the National Center for Atmospheric Research.
No Fatalities have been confirmed so far.
The three fires combined have burnt over 106,000 acres of land so far.
Waldo, High Park Fires Satellite View
Waldo Canyon Fire
View Waldo Canyon Fire in a larger map
High Park Fire
View High Park Fire in a larger map
Waldo Canyon Fire Photos
Flagstaff Fire
READ MORE:
>>In Depth: "Monster" Colorado Wildfire rages; Obama Plans Visit
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