Hurricane-force winds drive massive fire between Denver and Boulder in Colorado
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has declared a state of emergency as multiple fires have erupted in size due to hurricane-force winds coming off the Rocky Mountain Front.
"Residents of two Colorado towns have been told to evacuate because of wildfires driven by 'historic' 80-100 mph winds, officials said Thursday. At least six people are being treated for injuries related to one of the fires," CNN reported Thursday.
CBS Denver's Dillon Thomas reported Centura Health had evacuated patients from Avista Adventist Hospital and moved the patients to Longmont and St. Anthony.
Fire continues to burn near Avista Hospital. #9Newspic.twitter.com/nIabRUtO9u— Nelson Garcia (@Nelson Garcia) 1640907711
The winds were so fierce one building collapsed.
Discount Tire at 64th and Simms in Arvada collapsed in high winds. Debris all over the parking lot and some cars with smashed windows. #9newspic.twitter.com/m9aDGNQZRr— Jennifer Hicks (@Jennifer Hicks) 1640907767
A meteorologists noted atmospheric waves could be seen in the fire's smoke plume.
The WAVES in the atmosphere are clearly evident in the smoke plume from the Marshall Fire near Boulder, Colorado. This is causing very erratic fire conditions along the Front Range. Winds will begin to ease in the next 2 hours. @NWSBoulder @Denverchannel #cowxpic.twitter.com/OwjIzy6JCU— Mike Nelson (@Mike Nelson) 1640906580
Sickening radar imagery of the fires around Boulder that\u2019s gotten much worse since initial tweet 2 hours ago.pic.twitter.com/zJ6p5sJw9O— Sean Ash (@Sean Ash) 1640906625
Here are some images of the fire:
More scene from the #MarshallFire by @hrichardson and @HyoungChang \n\nSee more photos from the Boulder County fires here: https://dpo.st/31dKnyL\u00a0pic.twitter.com/VKz3JsJqyk— The Denver Post (@The Denver Post) 1640917364
Nearly 600 homes known lost in #MarshallFire - hotels, shopping centers hit. Fire at 1600 acres but it grows by the minute in raging winds. \u201cTens of thousands\u201d evacuated. Help arriving from all over. \u201cThe end won\u2019t come until the wind subsides\u201d -Boulder Co Sheriff @CBSDenverpic.twitter.com/U8DfOC9OSC— Alan Gionet (@Alan Gionet) 1640909864
Genuinely hard to believe this is happening in late December in Boulder, CO. But take a record warm & dry fall, only 1 inch of snow so far this season, & add an extreme (100mph+) downslope windstorm...and extremely fast moving/dangerous fires are the result. #COwx #MarshallFirepic.twitter.com/rd7L3JOFI8— Daniel Swain (@Daniel Swain) 1640896586
#BREAKING: Cars flipping around and going wrong way on U.S. 36 to escape fast-moving wildfire. #cowx @DenverChannel @BoulderOEM #wildfire #BoulderFirepic.twitter.com/uiBiptg5J7— Russell Haythorn (@Russell Haythorn) 1640897966
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has declared a state of emergency due to the fires burning in Boulder County.\n\n@RobMarciano has the latest forecast. http://abcn.ws/32NVq1O\u00a0pic.twitter.com/EHcUI2LwNQ— ABC News Live (@ABC News Live) 1640909575
Please view the official evacuation area for the #MarshallFire at this point. Also, areas just north of S. Boulder Rd. between Cherryvale/76th up to Arapahoe Rd is in pre-evac notice.pic.twitter.com/p2OZ41rp1O— Boulder OEM (@Boulder OEM) 1640902884
Map of the fire, with Boulder in the Northwest corner and downtown Denver in the Southeast corner:
Boulder fire map.Boulder Emergency Operations Center map.
pic.twitter.com/uFj07j1RVU— Governor Jared Polis (@Governor Jared Polis) 1640903941