Crews have lines around the 12 acre Arkansas Loop Fire in southeast La Plata County, and today’s plan is to keep the blaze within fire lines, put out hot spots and mop up.
The fire is burning in piñon, juniper and brush in the Bondad area in southeastern La Plata County, about half a mile south of the intersection of county roads 310 and 318, said Rich Gustafson, incident commander with the Bureau of Indian Affairs Southern Ute Agency Fire Management Team.
“We caught it early, when it was still small. We didn’t have the impacts we had in the Six Shooter Fire. We didn’t have to shut-in wells,” he said.
The blaze was started by a dry lightning strike either Friday or Saturday, he said.
The strike tree that ignited the fire has been identified.
“We were getting lightning in that area Friday and Saturday,” he said.