Thorpe Fire
Time Reported: 8/23/20
at 1:02 pm
- Size: 159
- Location: Park
County, South Park Ranger District, off Forest Service Road 230 and Park County Road 31, west
of Lake George, CO.
- Jurisdiction: US Forest Service, CO.
- Resources: Multiple agencies assisting including: Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Park County, El Paso County, Douglas County and Teller County; 1 bulldozer; 1 type 3 helicopter; 3 Large Air Tankers (LAT), 1 Very Large Air Tanker (VLAT).
- Containment: 100%
- Controlled: 9/18/20 @ 10:00 am size 156 acres
- Structures Threatened: yes
- Evacuations: Evacuations have been lifted and residents will be allowed to return to their home at 7:00 pm but will be in pre-evacuation status. Information can be found on the Park County website: https://parkco.us/AlertCenter.aspx?AID=Thorp-Fire-43.
Closures: Forest Service Roads 227 and 231. County Roads 31 and 44.
- Cause: unknown
- Concerns:
- Fuels:
grass and timber
- #Thorpefire_CO, fire has also been referred to as #230Fire. Official fire information will be using #Thorpefire_CO.
Update 9/02/2020, 3:30 pm: There is a change involving road closures on the #Thorpefire_CO. Forest Service road 230(FS rd 230) will be open to FS Rd. 227.1A and FS Rd 227 will be open to FS Rd 227.1A. FS Rd. 227 is a spur road off Road 44. Public will be able to do a loop using FS Rd. 227.1A from FS Roads 230 and 227. Public will not be able to drive west past the intersection of FS Rd. 230 and 227.1A or 227 and 227.1A. Firefighters are still staffing the fire so be on the look out for Fire equipment while in the area.
Update 8/27/2020, 5:30 pm: Planned resources for tomorrow: 10 person module, 4 person module, 1 tender, and 2 engines.
Update 8/27/2020, 8:00 am: Today resources will include a 10 person module, a 5 person module, and 3 engines. The planned burn for the interior will not occur as the weather for the next few days is not conducive.
Update 8/26/2020, 1:30 pm: The #Thorpefire_CO remains at 75% contained. The area received 1/4 inch of rain last night. There is a small unburned area within the interior of the fire perimeter that fire officials would like to burn in the next few days. It will help to secure the perimeter. Due to the rain, firefighters are assessing the best time to burn to allow for the greatest amount of clean-up of dead and downed trees. The public may see increased smoke when this occurs, but Forest Service officials will inform the public before burning commences. Resources on scene today include a 20 person crew, a 10 person crew, 3 engines, and a Module.
Update 8/25/2020, 8:00 pm: The #Thorpefire_CO is currently 75% contained. There are 48 resources assigned to the fire. The team will transition to a Type 4 team tomorrow morning.
Update 8/24/2020, 6:00 pm: The #Thorpefire_CO is currently 50% contained. There are now approximately 110 firefighters on scene. Evacuations have been lifted and residents will be allowed to return to their homes at 7:00 pm but will remain in pre-evacuation status.
Update 8/24/2020, 11:00 am: New acreage due to crews walking the perimeter of the fire and mapping with GPS. The MMA flight picked up only hot spots during the night. Cold spots on the perimeter were not detected. The fire has not grown in actual size, but better mapping has produced a more accurate number.
Update 8/24/2020, 9:00 am: A late night flight of the Thorpe Fire by the Multi-Mission Aircraft (MMA) has mapped the current size of the fire at 83 acres. The decrease in acreage is due to the more accurate mapping by the MMA. Crews made good progress overnight in utilizing natural and man-made barriers as fire lines. Today, firefighters will continue to improve these barriers as well as the fireline built by fire crews and the bulldozer. Evacuations remain in place and can be found on the Park County Sheriff's Office webpage. There are approximately 50 firefighters on scene with two Type 2 hand crews en route.
Update 8/23/2020, 8 pm: The Thorpe fire is currently estimated to be 150 acres burning in grass and timber. The Park County Sheriff's Office has implemented evacuations in the area of the fire which include campers along Forest Service Road 227 and 231 as well as County Roads 31 and 44. Webber Park Subdivision has also been evacuated (See Park County Alert Center for all current pre-evacuations and evacuations https://parkco.us/AlertCenter.aspx?AID=Thorp-Fire-43 ). The Thorpe fire has had a moderate rate of spread today and firefighters have been utilizing air resources to slow the fire as firefighters protect values at risk and make a direct attack on the fire where possible. Tonight, firefighters will be utilizing natural and man-made barriers with an indirect attack where possible.
Map of fire location:
