BOULDER, Colo. >> About 1,200 Colorado residents were ordered to evacuate Saturday due to a fast-moving wildfire near the site of a destructive 2021 blaze.
Protected wildland was burning near the Table Mesa neighborhood and the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder police said on Twitter. Authorities have called it the NCAR fire.
The wildfire had grown to 60 acres (24 hetacres) by late afternoon and was 0% contained, said Boulder Fire-Rescue spokesperson Marya Washburn.
The fire is in an area where a blaze destroyed 1,000 homes last year in unincorporated Boulder County and suburban Superior and Louisville.
Superior town officials told residents in an email that there were no immediate concerns for the community.
The fire was moving south-southeast toward Eldorado Springs, the Boulder County Sheriff’s office said.
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 2 p.m. Saturday, Washburn said. An Emergency Operations Center was activated, Boulder police said. Emergency alerts were 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.
Residents of south Boulder and the Eldorado Springs area had been told to evacuate. The evacuation area is bounded by U.S. 36 on the west and Baseline Road on the north, the Daily Camera reported. Other areas under evacuation orders include the Chautauqua, Interurban Park and Highland Park neighborhoods in addition to the Boulder open space west of those neighborhoods.
There was no immediate information on the cause of the blaze.
The skies are clear and the temperature was about 73 degrees (23 degrees Celsius) with wind at about 25 mph (40 kph). Winds were dying down later Saturday, Washburn said.
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