Many areas of Rocky Mountain National Park reopened Friday after being closed for two weeks after a massive wildfire spread into the park.
The west side of the park, where the East Troublesome Fire burned after making a big run in extremely dry conditions on Oct. 21, will remain closed because of the damage caused by the fire and ongoing safety assessments, park spokesperson Kyle Patterson said. Some areas on the eastern side of the park are also remained closed so park staff can check them for any fire activity and downed trees.
The fire's explosive growth led to the evacuation of the Grand Lake and the Estes Park areas.
The fire, the second-largest in Colorado history, destroyed more than 300 homes and between 100 and 200 secondary structures including barns and garages. It has burned over 193,000 acres but has not significantly grown since a storm dropped snow across the area on Oct. 25. Crews have increased containment to 47% as of Friday morning.
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