Wildfire in Teller County, Colorado

The largest wildfire in Colorado this century began on the evening of June 8th in Park county and spreads into Teller county early on the morning of the 9th. The wildfire was not fully contained until July 2nd. The Hayman Fire was allegedly started by a U.S. Forest Service employee. The fire consumed 43,000 acres of forest and meadows in Teller county generally north of a line from around 8 miles north northwest of Florissant to 8 miles north northwest of Woodland Park. Eighty eight residences were destroyed, along with around 200 other structures. The smoke plume caused heavy concentrations of smoke across Teller and El Paso county from time to time during the blaze. Besides the $6 million in damage to structures, $25 million will be spent in the fighting of the fire and rehabilitation of the burn area. Two firefighters sustained minor injuries in the burn area.