GREEN MOUNTAIN FALLS, Colo. (AP) -- A heavy air tanker, a helicopter and two single-engine air tankers were sent to battle a five-acre wildfire about eight miles northwest of Colorado Springs Monday.
The fire, burning in oakbrush and ponderosa pine on the east side of the Rampart Range in the Pike National Forest, was not threatening any structures and the cause was under investigation, according the U.S. Forest Service.
No evacuations have been ordered, said Sgt. Jim Groth, spokesman for the El Paso County Sheriff's Office.
The blaze, near Waldo Canyon Trail north of U.S. 24, was discovered early Monday morning.
''It is on rugged terrain and the topography is pretty steep where the fire is,'' said Groth, who was on scene earlier in the day.
He said the wind was blowing about five miles per hour.
About 25 firefighters were on scene and more were expected to arrive by late Monday.
Fire officials were also monitoring a 900-acre wildfire about 15 miles east of Dove Creek in the San Juan National Forest in southwest Colorado, said Larry Helmerick of the Rocky Mountain Area Coordination center in Lakewood. The lightning-caused blaze, which is being managed for ecological restoration, forced the closure of Forest Service Road 517. A few hunting camps were also evacuated.
Helmerick said the fire danger in Colorado is still about average for this time of year, but the lack of precipitation is cause for concern.
''We've had some fairly nasty fires in Colorado and the Rocky Mountain area in September and October so we can't let our guard down,'' he said. ''We ask the public to still be careful. It's not just a July and August kind of thing.''
