Island Acres Park is officially open after evacuations

The ground was black on both sides of I-70 as I neared Palisade driving back yesterday evening. "What, another fire and I-70 shut down again?" was what popped into my head after seeing the charred grass and trees. The closure forces drivers off the interstate all the way back to De Beque detouring traffic over the Mesa to Delta. "Man, I bet those folks weren't happy!" It's a holiday weekend and you're trying to get someplace only to detoured that far out of your way, ouch.

I-70 has been shut down a few time recently because of wildfires. The Skipper Island Fire was started but a guy illegally camping and setting some toilet paper on fire. The fire this past weekend was from a truck fire. The Rosevale Fire was started by a hot lawnmower. These unfortunate events remind us all that a fire doesn't need a match, bolt of lighting, or a cigarette butt to get started. A hot engine can do the trick.

The good news is that Island Acres Park is officially back open. The not so good news is that it's all black now. Let's hope we get some rain so it will green back up soon. In the meantime, the Western Slope remains in a drought and the fire danger is high.

Credit: KKCO 11 News

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