I-76 reopens in northeastern Colorado after brush fire burns 400 acres

Westbound Interstate 76 reopened Sunday afternoon in northeastern Colorado after crews squashed a brush fire that sparked on the side of the highway, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.

As of 4:20 p.m. Sunday, CDOT officials said westbound I-76 had reopened at Colorado 59, about 15 miles west of Julesburg and 3 miles south of Sedgwick. The highway was closed for roughly two hours.

The brush fire burned about 400 acres, or about 303 football fields worth of land, on the border of Sedgwick and Logan counties but didn’t damage any structures, Logan County Emergency Manager Josilyn Lutze said.

She said no injuries were reported from the fire, which was largely tackled by Crook fire crews.

Firefighters remained on scene as of 4:20 p.m. Sunday to mop up any remaining hot spots, but Lutze said the flames were fully under control.

A video shared by the National Weather Service’s Boulder office on social media showed flames burning up to the side of the interstate and smoke crossing the roadway just after 2 p.m. Sunday.

“Ok, everyone! Time to be extremely careful with anything that may produce a spark and start our next wildfire,” NWS officials said on social media. “This new fire is burning right up to I-76 east of Crook. Breezy today, but windier tomorrow!”

The Eastern Plains are under a Red Flag warning until 7 p.m. Sunday and another warning will activate Monday at 11 a.m., according to NWS forecasters.

Low humidity and high winds blowing across the plains create critical conditions for “rapid fire spread,” forecasters said in the warning. Wind gusts up to 35 mph will be possible on the plains through Sunday evening and stronger winds are forecast for Monday afternoon.