The Mullen Fire in Medicine Bow National Forest continued to grow Wednesday night, reaching 117,420 acres as of Thursday morning.
As the fire expanded to the south, crossing over the Colorado border in some cases, the the U.S. Postal Service announced Thursday morning that due to danger from the fire, mail delivery has been curtailed to some addresses in the Fox Park, Albany and Jelm areas.
Fox Park and Albany are among the areas that have been evacuated in the last few days as the fire has spread.
Fire activity was expected to be high on Thursday, officials announced on the fire tracking website InciWeb. A crew of 934 personnel were working to combat the fire as of Thursday morning, and more were expected to arrive over the next few days.
On Wednesday night when winds were favorable, firefighters conducted burnout operations to limit the fire’s spread by removing fuels along roads, fire lines and natural features.
They also began a control line west of Albany to improve the defense of areas east of the Rob Roy Reservoir, Cheyenne’s main water source.
Southeast of the fire, firefighters worked to interrupt the fire’s progression by burning out fuels on the west side of Wyoming Highway 230 and Colorado Highway 127 on the state border.
Firefighters also spent Wednesday night preparing structures for possible impacts from the fire and defended homes in and near the fire footprint.
A weak cold front was expected to cross the fire area early Thursday, boosting humidity levels slightly and keeping temperatures relatively cool.
A stronger cold front was predicted to reach the area Friday evening, bringing increased cloud cover, breezy winds and cooler temperatures by Saturday.
Winds will shift in a western direction and temperatures will again rise on Sunday and Monday.
