PHOTOS: Survey the damage from Windy Gap Fire
Sean McAlindin/Sky-Hi News
The air smelled of wet soot along the shoulder of U.S. Highway 40 on Saturday morning. Across the barren expanse of burned grass and sage, the trees stood still, just a hint brown dusting their dismayed leaves.
Down the hill, firefighters worked together to till the ash and put out the remaining embers of Windy Gap Fire with water pumped from the Colorado River. In the distance, the sound of chainsaws or generators cut through the grey clearing.
An old pickup truck pulled into the turnout of what was once Schmuck Ranch. Randy Schmuck, longtime owner of Randy’s Auto Body in Granby, had arrived to survey the scene. His grandmother owned this land decades ago and he spent many years living here in the cabins, he said.
Those cabins, which has been more or less abandoned, were now burned to the ground.
“It’s really sad to me,” he said.
A district truck appeared at the turnout, as the firefighters continued to tamp out the remaining threat. As of Sunday evening, the fire was 90% contained.
For more information about Windy Gap Fire, read our ongoing coverage here.
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The burn site is located between Windy Gap Reservoir, the Colorado River and U.S. Highway 40. Five cabins were destroyed by the blaze.
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The ground was charred and ashy at the site of the Windy Gap Fire on Saturday morning.
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