Western Colorado brush fire forces closure of I-70 near Rifle

Emergency officials closed Interstate 70 in western Colorado on Friday evening due to a brush fire. That's according to the Colorado Department of Transportation, which stated the full closure of the interstate is between Rifle and Parachute.

The fire is located in Garfield County, and several residences were evacuated for a short time.  

Garfield County is currently experiencing severe drought conditions.

The I-70 closure went into effect at approximately 5:30 p.m. and it was still in place 3 hours later.