English: The Junkins Fire, whose epicenter is located in Custer County about 11 miles east of Westcliffe, Colorado, spread tremendously in just a 24-hour period. What began as a fire of several acres on Monday, October 17, 2016, quickly exploded to cover miles of acreage (15,751 acres as of Tuesday morning) and as of the afternoon of October 18 was 0% contained. The fire is a wind-driven fire burning in mixed conifer, aspen, and grass. Two homes and 5 outbuildings were destroyed during the first twenty-four hours, and 281 homes are threatened. Evacuation orders are in place with an eye to public safety.

The incredibly swift spread of the fire was fed by high winds, low humidity, and unseasonably warm temperatures. Wind gusts up to 70 mph were reported on Monday. Cooler temperatures with lighter winds are expected over the next few days, which should assist in slowing down the fire spread.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) onboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this true-color image on October 17. Actively burning areas, detected by MODIS’s thermal bands, are outlined in red. Heavy gray smoke rises from the hotspot and blows eastward and under thin clouds.