Fires stopped in county

HUERFANO— Several fires caught toeholds throughout Huerfano County over the past week, but were quickly snuffed out before they could burn out of control.
The largest fire was on CR120 at the Tatman Ranch last Friday. All three Fire Protection Districts and help from private individuals with equipment as well as the Colorado State Forest Service helped to keep this fire from taking out hundreds or thousands of acres of very dry grassland. It also came dangerously close to an occupied residence. That fire consumed 317 acres. It is currently under investigation by HCSO.
The HCFPD also responded to a couple of small grass/weed fires in Walsenburg. One was near the tennis court on Pinon- which was just a small pile of weeds in an alleyway and was quickly extinguished.
Another fire near the railroad tracks just west of Hendren on W. 4th which consumed approx 700 sq. ft. of grass and weeds, it was also quickly extinguished by two brush units. The cause is unknown on both fires.
There was a pick-up truck with an engine fire on Welton St. Sunday morning, and the owner extinguished it before the fire department’s arrival. The national weather service forecast is for more hot, dry, windy conditions with some dry thunderstorms in the next few days; not good news for a fire department.
The latest word on the SPRHC fireworks display, scheduled for July 4, is that is still a go. According to Fire Chief Gerald Jerant, the hospital show is usually not a problem. “The SPRHC maintenance crew does an excellent job of mowing the entire area clear out to the highway. The grounds crew and the fire crew usually dampen the area with spray bars before the show, we should not have any problems. The final decision is up to Huerfano County Emergency Manager, the Sheriff and Commissioners.”