The cooler temperatures this week have been critical in helping firefighters put water on hot spots and prepare for full containment of the Mullen Fire in Medicine Bow National Forest, officials announced Thursday morning.
John Wallace, operations commander for the fire management team, discussed Wednesday’s operations and plans for Thursday during a Facebook livestream.
Certain areas in the southern region of the fire will likely be considered contained in the coming days, Wallace said.
However, the northern side is still burning actively.
“We are still in there working and trying to actively establish lines in there,” Wallace said. “But it’s been resistance primarily due to the amount of heavy down and dead fuel, largely the dead lodgepole pine.”
The fire has “really slowed down,” according to Wallace and had affected 170,996 acres as of Thursday morning. Nearly 1,100 personnel are working to combat the fire.
Although temperatures were cooler, a fire weather watch and red flag warning had been issued due to dry conditions and gusty winds.
A cold front will move into the area late Saturday into early Sunday, but “seasonal weather” will return for the next week, officials said.
