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JULY 25, 2000

The five-day-old fire in the Mesa Verde National Park continues to grow, having burned 22,000 acres of the park known worldwide for its archaeological and cultural treasures.

Cliff Palace and Balcony House, once home to ancestors of today's Pueblo people, are now in danger as the fire has come within four miles of the villages. A park employee says these and other ruins could be seriously threatened as early as today.

Firefighting crews continue the battle the blaze. With forecasts for continued dry heat, they said they could not predict what the fire would do and are worried they cannot stop the blaze.

"The fire continues to exhibit extreme fire behavior, creating it's own weather and confounding efforts to get the blaze under control," stated the US Forest Service yesterday.

Seventeen crews, 4 airtankers, and 3 helicopters representing a total of 679 people are dedicated to fighting the fire. It was caused last Thursday by lightning.

The fire, which started in on private land in the northeastern portion of the park, is growing to the south and west. To the west are the park's historic villages and to the south is the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation.

Air tankers and helicopters have been fighting the reservation portion of the blaze. The reservation area affected is uninhabited.

Archaeologists are traveling with fire crews as the blaze reveals new sites. They are mapping and marking the sites, which they hope can give them a better understanding of the region's inhabitants.

View a map of the fire's perimiter, as of July 23 (US Forest Service).

Related Stories:
Fire threatens reservation, ruins (7/24)
Fire burns Pueblo land (7/24)

More Fire Stories:
Pueblo monument fire out of control (Enviro 05/08)
Fire closes National Laboratory (Enviro 05/09)
Pueblo affected by fire (Enviro 05/11)
Sacred site saved from fire (Enviro 5/15)
Fire burns Pueblo land (Enviro 5/16)
Clinton suspends prescribed burns (Enviro 5/17)
Pueblo seeks fire aid (Enviro 5/18)
Pueblo still affected by fire (Enviro 5/19)

Relevant Links:
The Bircher Fire Site, US Forest Service - www.fs.fed.us/r2/fire/bircher
The National Interagency Fire Center - www.nifc.gov
Mesa Verde National Park - www.nps.gov/meve/