Evacuations issued southwest of Meeker as wildfire in Rio Blanco County grows to 131 acres
Jul 14, 2026
RIO BLANCO COUNTY, Colo. Evacuations were underway southwest of Meeker after a wildfire burning in Rio Blanco County grew to over 100 acres by Tuesday afternoon.Residents living along mile maker 22 County Road 5 and County Road
3 were ordered to evacuate immediately as the PL Gulch Fire continued to grow due to windy conditions Tuesday, deputies with the Rio Blanco County Sheriff's Office said in an update on social media.The blaze was reported at around 12:30 p.m. Monday approximately 20 miles southwest of Meeker, off of County Road 76, according to a spokesperson with the Rio Blanco County Sheriffs Office.The fire was reported burning in juniper and pinyon, with initial attack efforts including ground personnel and aerial resources.MORE | Extensive Denver7 coverage of other Colorado wildfiresPower was shut off in the County Road 3 and County Road 76 area, and fire officials said those power outages could also affect residents along County Road 5.County Road 76 was closed to all traffic so firefighters could safely work in putting out the blaze. County Road 5 was also closed from mile marker 22 to mile marker 18 due to fire activity, deputies said.The fire was reported to have grown to 150 acres by 7 p.m. Monday, but that acreage was downgraded to 131.1 acres after the perimeter was uploaded to the National Interagency Fire Center, according to the latest information reported by WatchDuty.There has been no containment on this blaze, fire officials said.
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