Saw Mill Fire In Southwestern Colorado Contained But May Burn For Months

DOLORES, Colo. (CBS) -- A fire that likely started on its own inside a massive pile of wood debris may be on its own until it dies out, perhaps days or even months from now.

Friday evening, passers-by reported seeing flames and smoke in the large slash pile behind Aspen Wall Wood's saw mill about two miles southeast of Dolores.

The official cause of the fire may never be known, but a spokesman for Dolores Volunteer Fire & Rescue told CBS4 Sunday it was probably spontaneous combustion. Exactly when that occurred is anyone's guess.

And how long before it's out? That's a shrug-worthy mystery as well.

Like oil, hay and tire fires, the resources necessary to immediately extinguish a fire of this size and with this much fuel are quite impractical for a large firefighting force with deep pockets, let alone a handful of small, rural departments.

So, firefighters will aim to keep this fire burning at a low intensity - a smolder - until it exhausts itself.

That could be a long time.

Friday night, Dolores VFR stated "It will burn...most likely months" in a Facebook post. By Sunday, the department spokesman said, "The fire is burning very hot and faster than expected so it's hard to really say how long say how long."

Montezuma County Sheriff Steve Nowlin told the Cortez Journal, "You can't put it out. All we can do is contain it...It could burn for a year."

Firefighters from four local fire departments - Dolores, Cortez, Mancos, and Lewis-Arriola - responded and were joined by a crew from the Colorado Department of Fire Prevention and Control.

Bulldozers and large equipment from Montezuma County and a nearby gravel pit also joined the effort, cutting lines around the blaze to keep it from expanding into Lost Canyon north of the saw mill property.

On its Facebook page, Dolores VFR expressed thanks to the people who called in the fire: "This fire could have gotten out of hand and could have been a lot worse had dispatch not received those calls! Thank you to those who reported it."