The 416 Fire is only 10% contained.

The wildfire just north of Durango along highway 50 is nasty. As of this morning, the 416 has forced 1,000 evacuations and more than 1,500 pre-evacuation notices. The fire has grown to over7,000 acres. About 600 firefighters are battling the blaze mostly in a defensive effort to try and protect homes. Crews have been cutting brush, turning on lawn sprinklers, and creating safe spaces around homes. Since the fire started back on the 1st of June the work has been primarily protecting homes and preventing the fire from jumping 550. The highway will remain open with limited access from 10 am to 6 pm each day. A police escort will guide vehicles through on one lane. Residences on evacuation notice will not be allowed back into their homes.

Fire crews also want folks to know that the 416 Fire will take some time to get under control. It may be days, perhaps weeks before this fire is extinguished. Again, the fire is only 10% contained. The terrain is challenging too. The mountains are steep and rocky which makes it difficult for firefighters to engage the fire directly. The extremely dry weather conditions aren't helping the situation either. Plus, most of the fire crews have been in "home protection" mode and it may be days before they can start attacking the flames directly.

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