The Decker Fire burns two miles south of Salida, Colorado, in the Sangre de Cristo Wilderness, according to InciWeb, and rages just a quarter of a mile away from the nearest homes, Chaffee County Sheriff John Spezze told 9NEWS on Saturday afternoon.
"Today is pivotal," Spezze said during a public meeting on Saturday morning, discussing the efforts to fight back the flames due to the gusty winds forecast for the area.
Smoke started to become more visible over the Decker Fire on Saturday afternoon as the fuels began to heat up. (Facebook/@DeckerFire2019)
"Continued gusty winds and very dry conditions will persist today and tomorrow," AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Rossio said. "This will only exacerbate the Decker Fire situation. Dry conditions are likely to continue through at least midweek, so relief is not expected in the near-term."
The fire has grown to 5,921 acres and is only 5% contained with 730 personnel involved as of Oct. 5, according to the Incident Information reports.
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Sparked by lighting on Sept. 8, the Decker Fire had grown significantly over the past few days amid gusty winds and dry weather conditions.
The flames have encroached close enough to homes claimed at least two buildings, according to public officials on Saturday.
The area of the Decker Fire on Oct. 5, 2019. (Facebook/@DeckerFire2019)
The first structure was a cabin on private land surrounded by forest in Fremont County. The second was outside of the evacuation area in Chaffee County, according to the Chaffee County Sheriff's Office.
Evacuations have not yet been ordered for Salida, officials said Saturday morning during a public meeting. However, 300 people and 130 houses have been evacuated as with five subdivisions included in the mandatory evacuation zone, according to KDVR.
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