The city of Ouray is open but staff is not actively marketing to bring visitors to the area, City Administrator Michelle Metteer said this morning.
“We are always looking to find a balance on what is considered responsible,” Metteer said during an emergency meeting of the Ouray County Board of County Commissioners.
Metteer said the Gold Mountain Fire is pulling the city and county’s emergency resources in several directions, and city officials want to be careful not to do anything that could divert the attention of first responders away from the fire.
City leaders find themselves trying to thread the needle on a delicate, complex situation. Summer tourism — especially the upcoming Fourth of July weekend — is critical to the bottom line of local businesses. Some of those businesses have taken to social media in the last couple of days, posting videos and photos depicting clear blue skies above Ouray, emphasizing that the fire is moving north away from the city and encouraging tourists to visit.
But neighborhood evacuations and road closures remain in place. A holiday influx of thousands of tourists could strain a city that is navigating the impacts of the fire and has been fully reliant on the Ouray County Sheriff’s Office for law enforcement services since January. Last year, the city estimated more than 19,000 people visited Ouray during the holiday, according to data gathered from cell phones.
The Ouray Hot Springs Pool is closed for the third straight day today. After being closed Sunday and Monday, the Ouray Via Ferrata reopened today only to guided climbers. Ouray Perimeter Trail trailheads on city property also remain closed. The trail itself is open.
U.S. Highway 550 remains closed between Uncompahgre Street and the Whispering Pines bridge.
A detour takes traffic along County Road 17 and Oak Street into Ouray, but officials say that detour is only for local commuters, visitors and local deliveries. Anybody seeking to travel through Ouray to destinations further south are being advised to take a longer detour over Colorado Highway 145 through Mountain Village. Likewise, motorists coming from Durango who are heading to Montrose or farther north should detour through Cortez and Mountain Village on Highway 145.
City officials must still decide whether to continue to host a full day of holiday events on Saturday, scale back or cancel the festivities altogether. The city has already called off the nighttime fireworks display, citing extreme fire danger.
The Ouray City Council will host an online meeting at 4 p.m. today to receive city-specific updates on the fire. Metteer said on Monday she expects city leaders to decide today how to handle the Fourth of July.
Expanded mandatory evacuation area and forest closure
Ouray County announced a mandatory evacuation this afternoon for the area around Lower Cow Creek, east of County Road 12 and 12A to the Owl Creek U.S. Forest Service Boundary. Anyone needing shelter can go to the Ridgway Secondary School at 1200 Green St. or call the hotline at 970-626-5484.
Ouray County Commissioner Jake Niece said this morning he expects the U.S. Forest Service to announce further closures in the Uncompahgre National Forest east of Ridgway later today. Specifically, he said, the public should expect closures in the area of Silverjack Reservoir, Owl Creek Pass and the Middle Fork of the Cimarron.
Authorities on Monday ordered an evacuation of hikers, campers and others recreating in the area of Cow Creek on Forest Service land past the intersection of County Road 12 and County Road 12C.
Second Chance Humane Society announced it is looking for volunteers for emergency foster homes, should the shelter be forced to evacuate. It is located north of the fire, on County Road 10. Anyone interested in volunteering can fill out this online form.
The fire, reported this morning at nearly 8,300 acres with 0% containment, continues to grow to the northeast. Firefighters today are building and reinforcing containment lines in an effort to keep it from spreading south toward Ouray and west toward U.S. 550.
Plaindealer co-publisher Erin McIntyre contributed to this report
