May 17, 2026
Authorities have lifted evacuation orders for people in the town of Campo on Sunday night, but rural residents near the town are still under mandatory evacuation orders as the Sharpe Fire burns more than 28,000 acres in Baca Cou nty.On Sunday night, the Springfield Volunteer Fire Department said the fire is 5% contained and crews have held the fire at County Road J. County officials previously ordered mandatory evacuations for the entire town of Campo and Road 24 to Road 36 south of Road J to the state line because of the fire. Only residents in rural areas immediately near Campo remain under mandatory evacuations. Governor Jared Polis declared a disaster emergency in response to the fire on Sunday night, which activates the State Emergency Operations Plan and directs state officials to take responsibility for all response, recovery, and mitigation efforts.Megan England, with Baca County Emergency Management, said the county has not received reports of any homes burned."It's all hands on deck for the crews that have been paged," said England. "We have several dozen agencies responding from all over this part of the state and from outside the state as well. Over 100 units on scene of various types, both fire, law enforcement, and EMS." Chloe Johnson, a Campo resident who evacuated her home, said the emergency response in her town has been overwhelming as residents work to move livestock from the flames and help fire crews."We've seen other communities experience the same thing. You just never really think that you'll be in their shoes," said Johnson. "Almost all the streets are kind of, are lined with ranchers and their water trailers or water trucks. There was tractors trying to get through town with their discs, just trying to get wherever the firefighters needed them. My dad's a firefighter and he's been around town and kind of hanging out and seeing if they need help and where he can help out." The Colorado Department of Transportation has reopened both directions of US 287 from the Oklahoma state line to US 50 in Lamar. A 78-mile portion of US 287 was previously closed from the Oklahoma border on Sunday because of heavy smoke.Vaughn Jones, the Chief of Wildland Fire Management for the Colorado Division of Fire Protection and Control, said crews battled the fast-moving fire as it crossed into Colorado from Oklahoma Sunday afternoon."It's run at least about 10 miles today, and it is currently threatening the town of Campo in southeast Colorado," said Jones. "A combination of the terrain, the dry fuels, and then the wind, and we weren't able to get containment all the way around all sides of the fire. And then it just lined up with the wind blowing southwest to northeast."The State Division of Fire Prevention and Control said it has multiple resources in the area, including three engines, three hand crews and a multi-mission aircraft.The Campo School District announced on Facebook it postponed Sunday's graduation due to the fire.The cause of the wildfire remains unknown as crews continue to respond.This is a developing story and will be updated as soon as more information is released ...read more read less
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