Wyoming wildfire forces hundreds of evacuation

Casper Fire EMS officials believed they extinguished the fire that evening, but say an ember must have ignited nearby high grasses Sunday morning and high winds quickly spread the flames.

A fast moving grass fire forced evacuations and destroyed a few homes and other buildings in the Casper area.

The fire burned about 3.5 acres, there were no injuries and no residential structures were threatened, McCollum said.

The fire was about 50 percent contained and had burned 10,116 acres as of Tuesday afternoon, said Natrona County Fire Marshall Bob Fawcett.

The fire pumped thick smoke into surrounding cities, including the state capital of Boise, prompting Idaho health officials to issue an air pollution alert warning people to avoid prolonged outdoor exposure.

Aaron Shatto says they are asking people to stay away from the area to facilitate the firefighting effort.

“There are a lot of hazards after a fire like this, we just urge everybody to be aware of the dangers and to be careful”, said Fawcett.

The Red Cross asked Casper residents to donate yard implements – shovels, rakes, leather gloves – to aid the task of sifting through debris for any personal belongings.

An evacuation order remains in effect after the fire flared up again Monday afternoon.

A large wildfire raging in Wyoming has prompted the evacuation of hundreds of homes near Evansville and Casper.

Fire officials are contacting landowners who lost their homes. The fire started at the Casper landfill Saturday under dangerously dry prairie conditions with low humidity and 45 miles per hour winds.

The fire started Saturday in a composting area at a regional landfill near Casper.