The Crosho Fire, growing west of Phippsburg and Yampa in South Routt County, remained zero percent contained at 2,200 acres as of Friday morning.

On Wednesday, the fire more than tripled after it was reported to have covered about 500 acres in the morning, then 1,700 acres in the afternoon. The fire remained at about 1,700 acres throughout Thursday, until it was reported to have grown to 2,200 acres.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation as of Friday, according to U.S. Forest Service Public Affairs Specialist Aaron Voos. More details will be provided as they become available.

Evacuation Orders

A map of evacuation zones can be viewed at TinyUrl.com/3p5b6rjw. Residents in the Zone 2 area were issued “Go” evacuation orders Thursday afternoon just before 4 p.m.

Zones 3 and 4 were issued “Go” evacuation orders around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday. Zones 5, 7 , 8 and 9 were also issued “Set” pre-evacuation orders. Three additional zones were created south of the fire. Zones 11, 12 and 13 were issued “Ready” pre-evacuation orders around 1:15 p.m. Wednesday.

Zone 13 was changed from crossing the Garfield County and Routt County line to bordering the county line on the Routt County side. Residents should regularly check evacuation zones for updated information.

Information on evacuation zones as of 7:00 p.m. Thursday:

• Zone 1 – Monitor (Ready)
• Zone 2 – EVACUATE (GO)
• Zone 3 – Evacuated 8/13/25
• Zone 4 – Evacuated 8/13/25
• Zone 5 – PRE-EVACUATE (Set)
• Zone 6 – Monitor (Ready)
• Zone 7 – PRE-EVACUATE (Set)
• Zone 8 – PRE-EVACUATE (Set)
• Zone 9 – PRE-EVACUATE (Set)
• Zone 10 – Monitor (Ready)
• Zone 11 – Monitor (Ready)
• Zone 12 – Monitor (Ready)
• Zone 13 – Monitor (Ready)

A Type 3 Incident Management Team — a multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional team used for extended emergencies — took over the firefighting efforts Thursday evening, according to a Thursday evening update from the Forest Service.

High fire activity led to growth of the fire on all sides, according to the Forest Service update. Full suppression tactics continued Thursday, with local and federal resources focusing on containment and structure protection.

According to a statement from the Town of Oak Creek, officials are predicting high fire activity through Saturday evening, which may lead to growth on the north and west sides of the fire.

As of Thursday evening, over 200 fire personnel were battling the fire, including four water scoopers, two Sky Hammer Type 1 helitankers, two C-130s, airtankers (LAT and LATs) and one additional helitanker.

The U.S. Forest Service closed areas of the Routt National Forest surrounding the fire Wednesday evening. To view the affected areas, visit TinyUrl.com/2c8s9b99

Stagecoach State Park reopened the reservoir to boaters Thursday morning. All motorized and non-motorized boats must remain within the four major coves or 100 yards of shoreline at all times.

Water tankers will continue to pick up water from Stagecoach Reservoir throughout Thursday, according to a statement from Stagecoach State Park.

As of Wednesday evening, the following roadways were closed and officials are urging members of the public to stay out of the areas.

• Routt County Road 15 from the intersection of Routt County Road 17 to Crosho Lake
• Routt County Road 132 from Routt County Road 15 to Dunckley Pass
• Routt County Road 25 from Routt County Road 132A to Routt County Road 132
• Routt County Road 19 from Routt County Road 15 to Routt County Road 25
• Rio Blanco County Road 8 (Dunckley Pass) is closed at the intersection of Rio Blanco County Road 8 and Rio Blanco County Road 19

The National Forest Service issued an Air Quality Health Advisory for Friday, extending through at least 9 a.m. Saturday.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.