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A series of wildland fires shut down the westbound lanes of Interstate 70 near Gypsum on Thursday afternoon for more than two hours. An Eagle County alert announced the closure of the westbound lanes at 1:45 p.m., and the road reopened shortly after 4 p.m.

Units from the Gypsum Fire Protection District and other local fire departments responded to the wildfires, which sparked along the right side of the roadway. The fires were just west of the River Dance RV Park and caught fire in the fine grasses along the road.

Traffic during the I-70 closure was diverted to U.S. Highway 6.

An update from the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office at 4:45 p.m. stated that crews had made significant progress on the fires, which are now mostly extinguished. Mop-up efforts are ongoing to address remaining hot spots.

Multiple fires have begun in Eagle County in the last 10 days, including the Red Canyon Fire near Wolcott along I-70 that broke out Wednesday, June 18, and spot fires that were quickly doused along the interstate in Gypsum on Sunday.

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Dry and windy conditions prompted red flag warnings last week, and Stage 1 fire restrictions go into place Friday, June 27, along most of the western I-70 corridor.