Wildfire — Natrona County Lower Elevations, Wyoming

2015-10-11 to 2015-10-16 · Natrona County Lower Elevations, Wyoming

Wider weather episode

The Cole Creek Wildfire spread rapidly in windy, dry, and warm conditions on Sunday, October 11. The fire carried quickly through grassy fuels and caused the evacuation of several neighborhoods in the vicinity of Coal Creek Road northeast of Casper. No human lives were lost, but the wildfire did eventually consume numerous homes, outbuildings, vehicles, pets, and livestock.

The fire began around 1720MST on Saturday, October 10, in a wood chip pile at the Casper Regional Landfill north of Casper. On Sunday, gusty southwest wind steadily increased through the morning hours. Sustained wind of 30 to 40 mph and gusts of 45 to 50 mph were recorded by 0800MST at nearby Casper-Natrona County International Airport. These speeds continued through the day before decreasing after 1500MST. Other nearby mesonet stations measured wind gusts of 58 mph to 65 mph during the morning. The strong wind enabled the fire to spread beyond the boundary of the landfill and move quickly to the northeast. Evacuation orders were issued for the Cole Creek Road, Geary Dome, and Meadow Acres areas by 1300MST Sunday. A total of 190 homes were threatened by the flames. By that evening, ten homes were believed to have been destroyed. At the fire's peak, there were 150 firefighters on-scene.

The fire continued on Monday, October 12, as southwest wind again increased by 0800MST. Although less than Sunday, sustained wind of 20 to 25 mph with gusts around 30 mph enabled the fire to continue its trek northeast. Another two homes were destroyed as the fire had two distinct blow-ups, one around 0900MST and another around 1300MST. In all, close to 10,000 acres had been consumed by Monday evening and approximately 1,350 people displaced.

An evacuation order remained in-place until 1600MST Tuesday, October 13, when residents were allowed to return home. Hot spots were addressed on Wednesday before the fire was declared 100% contained on Friday, October 16. The fire cut a large swath south to Edness K. Wilkins State Park and the North Platte River and to the north through small rural ranches.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 600928. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.