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Why is it so hazy in Colorado? Smoke from multiple wildfires wafts toward I-70 corridor

While the Turner Gulch Fire grew more than 5,800 acres since Tuesday, another wildfire in western Colorado has seen 13% of the perimeter contained

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A large plume of smoke fills the sky over the Turner Fire on Tuesday, July 15. The wildfire near Gateway was reported to be burning on nearly 14,000 acres as of Wednesday.
InciWeb/Courtesy photo

A haze of smoke from wildfires burning in Colorado wafted into counties along the Interstate 70 mountain corridor on Wednesday, prompting an air quality health advisory.

The smoke is from four wildfires burning in western Colorado — the Turner Gulch, Wright Draw, Sowbelly and South Rim fires — as well as one burning near the state’s border with Utah, according to the .Ìý

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment updated its Wednesday to include Garfield, Pitkin, Eagle, Lake and Chaffee counties. An air quality advisory has been in place for Mesa, Delta, Gunnison and Montrose counties since last Thursday.



The advisory states that people in those counties — especially young children, older adults or those with heart disease and respiratory illnesses — should consider staying indoors if smoke becomes thick. If visibility is less than 5 miles, smoke has reached levels that are unhealthy, according to the public health advisory.

As of Wednesday morning, the Turner Gulch Fire burning about 8 miles north of Gateway had exploded to 13,984 acres, growing , according to . The nearby Wright Draw Fire is estimated at 448 acres.

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Both fires remain uncontained, with firefighters planning to focus on protecting structures in the area and holding the blazes south of Colorado Highway 141, where rolling closures have been in place due to the fires, the federal wildfire information system states. 

“Extreme drought conditions, steep terrain, and hot and dry weather will continue to challenge firefighters on the Turner Gulch and Wright Draw fires,” according to an update posted Wednesday. There are reportedly 289 personnel responding to the fires.

Smoke from wildfires burning in western Colorado drifted toward the Interstate 70 corridor Wednesday, July 16. An air quality advisory is in place for counties throughout the state.
PurpleAir/Screenshot

Another large wildfire, the Deer Creek Fire, which began in Utah but has since crossed over the border into Colorado, south of the Four Corners area, is estimated at 14,760 acres and is about 7% contained, according to InciWeb. There are 415 personnel responding to the fire.

The South Rim Fire that has closed the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park had grown to 4,160 acres as of Wednesday morning, an increase of a few hundred acres since Tuesday, the federal fire information system states. The fire remains uncontained with 420 personnel responding.

With no growth reported from Tuesday to Wednesday, the Sowbelly Fire burning in the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area remains at 2,274 acres and is now 13% contained, according to InciWeb. There are 49 personnel responding to the fire.

Smoke billows up from the Turner Fire near Colorado Highway 141 on Tuesday, July 15. Wildfire smoke from the Turner Fire and other wildfires burning in Colorado was visible along the I-70 corridor Wednesday morning.
InciWeb/Courtesy photo
The Sowbelly Fire burning in the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area remained at 2,274 acres Wednesday, July 16. Firefighters have contained about 13% of the fire’s perimeter.
Bureau of Land Management/Courtesy photo
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