Utah's Range Fire was started by police target shooting and has engulfed more than 3,400 acres in just 48 hours, as the CalWood fire in Colorado scorches 8,000 acres and forces nearly 3,000 evacuations
Utah fire officials have confirmed that one of the state's fires that broke out over the weekend was started by police target shooting as firefighters in neighboring Colorado battle a massive blaze that has scorched more than 8,000 acres and forced nearly 3,000 evacuations.
The Range Fire has nearly doubled in size across 3,450 acres since it started on Saturday.
In a tweet, Utah Fire Info said the fire is 10 per cent contained and is burning outside the city of Orem.
Officials also revealed the cause of the fire, saying: 'Investigators determined that the #RangeFire originated at the Orem Police Gun Range & was caused by target shooting.'
Authorities said the Orem police officer present when the fire started is cooperating with officials. The investigation is ongoing.
Another fire is also burning in Utah. The Fire Canyon Fire is estimated to have spread across 1,600 acres. Officials said it isn't currently threatening any structures and is 25 per cent contained.
Utah fire officials have confirmed that one of the state's fires that broke out over the weekend was started by police target shooting
The Range Fire has nearly doubled in size across 3,450 acres since it started on Saturday. Officials also revealed the cause of the fire, saying: 'Investigators determined that the #RangeFire originated at the Orem Police Gun Range & was caused by target shooting'
In addition to the Range Fire , firefighters in Utah are also battling the Fire Canyon Fire, which is estimated to be burning through 1,600 acres
The CalWood and Lefthand Canyon fires are scorching parts of Colorado while the Fire Canyon and Range fires are burning in Utah
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Authorities believe the Fire Canyon Fire was also human-caused, but it is under investigation.
Meanwhile in Colorado, nearly 3,000 people were forced to flee from a fast-moving fire in north-central Colorado that has scorched more than 8,000 acres.
The CalWood Fire started around noon Saturday near the Cal-Wood Education Center, which is about 17 miles from downtown Boulder.
The National Center for Atmospheric Research's Mesa lab said the fire was pushed by strong winds recorded at 59mph on Saturday.
By Sunday, the fire had burned nearly 8,900 acres and is 15 per cent contained.
More than 1,600 residences and nearly 3,000 people were under evacuation orders, including the small town of Jamestown, Boulder County officials said.
Based on the path of the fire, officials believe it is likely that many homes were lost, Mike Wagner, the Boulder County sheriff's division chief, said Sunday.
Wagner said damage assessment teams haven't been able to get into the area to determine how many homes were lost, but at least 26 have been destroyed.
Meanwhile in Colorado, nearly 3,000 people were forced to flee from a fast-moving fire in north-central Colorado that has scorched more than 8,000 acres. The CalWood Fire is seen burning in Gunbarrel, Colorado on Sunday
The CalWood Fire started around noon Saturday near the Cal-Wood Education Center. The National Center for Atmospheric Research's Mesa lab said the fire was pushed by strong winds recorded at 59mph on Saturday
By Sunday, the fire had burned nearly 8,900 acres and is 15 per cent contained. A slurry bomber drops retardant over the CalWood fire near Buckingham Park on Saturday
More than 1,600 residences and nearly 3,000 people (pictured evacuating Saturday) were under evacuation orders, including the small town of Jamestown, Boulder County officials said
Police officers move a barricade into place at a roadblock on northbound Highway 36 at Broadway as nearby residents evacuate as a fire races through the mountains on Saturday
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More humid weather was expected to help fire crews battle the blaze.
'Everyone is thrilled with the weather this morning,' Jennifer Bray, spokesperson with the Boulder County Emergency Operations Center told The Denver Post on Sunday. 'And hoping that will be a big help in their efforts today.'
The plan for Sunday was for aerial crews to hit the fire 'as hard as they can' before winds picked up later in the day, Wagner said.
Courtney Walsh was one of those who lost her home, she told The Denver Post.
She said she had about a 30-minute warning to gather up her children, animals and some belongings before sheriff's deputies urged her to leave the house on Saturday afternoon.
'We were just waiting and waiting, and you know there is Twitter and live feeds,' she said Sunday.
'Then we saw a picture from the National Weather Service, and it focused on our house burning. So then we knew.
'There were baby books that I didn't grab, and I´m regretting it,' Walsh said Sunday, fighting tears. 'Those are the one thing I always thought, "I have to grab those if anything happens," and I just didn't. I froze.'
Firefighters in Colorado are also battling the Cameron Peak fire , which started in mid-August and is burning west of Fort Collins, has grown to 203,520 acres and was 62 per cent contained on Sunday
More than 1,500 firefighters are working the Cameron Peak blaze , which is the largest fire in Colorado history
Shannon Kiss said smoke from the CalWood fire started seeping into her condo near Gunbarrel on Friday night, so she and her 14-year-old daughter taped up the doors and placed towels and blankets on the floor.
'We went outside and the ash was hitting our face,' she told The Associated Press on Sunday. 'The wind was blowing and it felt almost like a windy rain, but it was ash hitting our face.'
On Saturday, they prepared to evacuate.
'We saw the huge, billowing smoke coming from the foothills,' she said. 'I've seen in the distance in the mountains, but never a populated area. Never this close.'
The Lefthand Canyon Fire that started Sunday on private property about 20 miles northwest of Boulder has grown to just over one-third of a square mile.
It led to the evacuation of at least 145 homes, including the small town of Ward, which has about 150 residents, Boulder County officials said.
The Cameron Peak fire, which started in mid-August and is burning west of Fort Collins, has grown to 203,520 acres and was 62 per cent contained on Sunday.
More than 1,500 firefighters are working the blaze, which is the largest fire in Colorado history.
A spot fire east of the main Cameron Peak fire burned homes overnight Friday and into Saturday, Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith said in a Facebook post Sunday morning.
He said homes were lost in The Retreat in Glen Haven, but did not say how many. The sheriff's office will assess the damage and notify homeowners.