Chatridge 3 Fire Burns Dangerously Close To Home In Douglas County
DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4)- Dry weather, warm temperatures and strong winds spelled trouble in Douglas County where a two-alarm fire licked at the doorsteps of a multi-million dollar home. It was named the Chatridge 3 Fire and a pre-evacuation order was issued for Chatfield Estates.
Ruth Lorenz knows it was a close call for her house.
"First responders are awesome we can't express how much we appreciate what they have done," she said.
The fire burned some 24 acres near the intersection of Highway 85 and Titan Road, close to the southeast corner of Chatfield State Park, before South Metro firefighters and their partners got it under control. For the residents in the neighborhood, it was deja vu.
Lorenz added, "This is not the first rodeo we have had here. We have had five in the 10 years we have lived here."
It was the third significant fire and there have also been smaller ones.
Rhonda Franklin lives nearby and had been affected previously by the massive Hayman fire and the East Troublesome Fire in Grand Lake.
"I'm scared... we have lived here 35 years and this isn't the first fire," she said.
Conditions were ripe for fires on Tuesday and looking worse for Wednesday.
"You throw in a big wind like we have today and possibly tomorrow, especially coming out of the south and southwest, and we are expecting big wildfire conditions."
Previous fires in the area have been tied to power line issues. This one is under investigation.