Firefighters Contain Tire Fire In Weld County To 7.5 Acres
HUDSON, Colo. (AP/CBS4) - Firefighters have contained a fire at a large tire recycling facility in northern Colorado to 7.5 acres and hope to have it mostly extinguished Thursday. The fire near County Roads 41 and 24 (close to Hudson in Weld County) broke out Wednesday night when a piece of equipment caught fire, sending up plumes of dark smoke visible from far away.
As of 7 p.m. Thursday, the fire had been extinguished.
A fire sparked by lightning burned 30 acres of tires at the site in 1987. This time, firefighters consulted with the incident commander from that fire. On his advice, they brought in heavy equipment to surround the burning tires with dirt.
The berms of dirt helped stopped the spread of the fire and the dirt is also being pushed on the fire to extinguish it.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment was monitoring the air quality as a result of the smoke. Residents in the area who have weakened immune systems are urged to close their windows, or stay somewhere else if possible.
(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)