Hot, dry and windy conditions are once again increasing fire activity at the 24 wildfire located on Ft. Carson army base. A large smoke plume has developed and is spreading to the north and east of the fire's location near the intersection of the El Paso, Pueblo, and Fremont county lines. Fortunately, there is quite a bit of lift in the atmosphere that is keeping most of the smoke high up in the sky, though a few brief periods of smoke could move down to the surface near Fountain and southern parts of the Colorado Springs area.
Some changes will likely arrive after the sun sets. As atmospheric mixing decreases with cooler temperatures, smoke will start to hug the surface of the earth and potentially impact nearby communities. We also anticipate the wind to shift which could send smoke in various directions. One direction it could move is to the south and southwest which could impact parts of Fremont County, including Cañon City, Florence and Penrose. This is most likely to occur at some point between 8pm and midnight Wednesday evening. Fortunately, any smoke that infiltrates these areas should be relatively brief (perhaps an hour or two), so significant health impacts are not anticipated at this time. However, it is always a good idea to take steps to protect your health when smoke is present in your neighborhood, including remaining indoors with the doors and windows closed until the smoke clears.
A cold front will be arriving Thursday night which could bring some more impactful changes to the air quality in Fremont County. A wind shift may push smoke into those same Fremont County locations discussed above for several hours Thursday night. Wet weather likely arrives Friday morning which would clear out the smoke and improve the air quality. We will monitor the situation closely and issue an advisory for Thursday night, if necessary.
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