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Western wildfires chase away tourists, residents
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August 19, 1996
Web posted at: 10:30 a.m. EDT
CORTEZ, Colorado (CNN) -- Seasonal wildfires, fueled by wind and dry weather, plagued tourists and residents alike across the American West Monday, forcing them to flee vacations spots and homes.
About 1,000 tourists were driven from Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado Sunday, where officials watched as the fire quickly scooted across 400 acres and threatened the park's facilities.
"If (the wind) blows to the north, we lose the visitors center, the Far View Lodge, the cafeterias, gift shop," said park dispatcher Brian Barrell. "If it blows to the south, then there is the museum, headquarters, all the park offices and most of the part residences."
Mesa Verde is home to ancient Anasazi culture cliff dwellings, some of which date back to the 10th century. There was no word on whether the structures, mostly high on the mesa's cliffsides, were in danger.
Over a dozen fires burned over the weekend in Colorado. Thirteen fires scorched 10,000 acres in and around Yosemite National Park, and 450 people were evacuated from their homes in Colorado Springs.
Hundreds of thousands of acres were ablaze in at least five
states Monday morning, including a 70,000-acre, week-old fire
north of San Francisco that has forced several evacuations.
The smoke in the Upper Lake region of California stretches
from San Francisco Bay to Lake Tahoe. (213K QuickTime movie)
"It's only 15 percent contained at this point in time,"
U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Theresa Clepl said Monday
morning. "We don't have expected containment." (190K AIFF or WAV sound)
Clepl said that near 3,000 firefighters were working the fire, which has been fueled by hot, dry winds.
Other fires burned in southern California, Oregon, Montana and Utah.
A 67,000-acre fire was unchecked in a wilderness area near San Luis Obispo in southern California. That fire was 40 percent contained Monday morning, although it had burned down two summer homes and a mobile home.
Cooler conditions -- including some snow in the far northeast -- gave firefighters a boost in Oregon. A 109,000-acre fire on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation was 70 percent contained late Sunday, although it had destroyed 11 homes. Over 350,000 acres have burned in Oregon in recent weeks.
Related stories:
- Wildfires continue in West - August 18, 1996
- Oregon wildfire triples in size - August 15, 1996
- Fires force highway closure - August 14, 1996
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