Small ‘Dinosaur Fire’ Wildfire Prompts NCAR Evacuation in Boulder, CO

TL/DR –

A small wildfire named the Dinosaur Fire began on Friday morning near the National Center for Atmospheric Research office in Boulder, Colorado, leading to the evacuation of the NSF NCAR Mesa Lab campus. The fire, which has been estimated at approximately three acres, is not currently threatening any structures. Multiple Colorado fire and police agencies are responding to the fire, and no injuries have been reported at this time.

Dinosaur Fire Breaks Out Near National Center for Atmospheric Research Office, Boulder

A minor wildfire, named the Dinosaur Fire, broke out on Friday morning near the National Center for Atmospheric Research office in Boulder’s open space area. The fire is not currently threatening any structures, but the NSF NCAR Mesa Lab campus was evacuated as a precaution. The fire, which is located close to the Mallory Cave Trail, was estimated to cover approximately 3 acres a few hours after it started.

Colorado fire and police agencies are currently responding to the fire. A helicopter was utilized to drop water on the blaze. The fire is considered “slow-moving” according to officials. The Boulder Police Department stated that the #DinosaurFire does not pose any immediate evacuation concerns.

According to Rick Tillery from Mountain View Fire Rescue, unless the wind direction changes, there’s no risk of the fire encroaching on structures or homes. No injuries have been reported and the cause of the fire remains unknown.

Hikers in the open space area were asked to leave and trails around the fire were closed. The Boulder Office of Emergency Management has requested that people not call 911 about the fire as “crews are already aware of the fire”. They tweeted this information out to ensure emergency lines remained open for other incidents.

Boulder, like other areas on Colorado’s Front Range, is currently experiencing extremely hot temperatures. At 12:45 p.m., the thermometer showed 97 degrees.

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