In the summer of 1879, the largest wildfire in Colorado history at the time tore through 26,000 acres of rugged forest about eight miles south of Silverton and presaged a vast shift in its landscape. ...

The Ouray Police Department's administrative assistant has resigned, leaving the office with one remaining employee assigned to desk duty. The resignation comes just after the city's response to a civ...

One breezy afternoon in mid-July, Mike Potter's phone started making all kinds of noise. “It goes, beep, beep, beep, beep!” shouted the Ridgway rancher, brandishing his flip phone from the pocket of h...

Ouray County officials said Tuesday that flood mitigation work below the Gold Mountain Fire’s burn scar could begin as soon as next week, while warning that storms in the coming days could trigger fur...

When the fire raged above them on the mountain, the evacuated residents of Ponderosa Village hoped for rain. They wished for anything to help the firefighters get control of the blaze so it wouldn't b...

Draft ballot language proposes half-cent tax, with revenue split between county, city, town Ouray County commissioners are in talks to put a half-penny sales tax increase question to voters this fall ...

At least 17 people were rescued from flooding and debris flows in the Cutler Creek area between Ridgway and Ouray on Wednesday night, authorities said this morning. At least three homes in Ponderosa V...

UPDATE, 9:45 p.m. U.S. Highway 550 reopened between Ridgway and Ouray Wednesday night, authorities announced at 9:15 p.m. Emergency officials encouraged motorists to be cautions when driving through a...

Heavy rainfall over scorched soil sent flash floods raging down Cutler Creek on Sunday night, spilling mud down through Ponderosa Village and briefly shuttering U.S. Highway 550. The torrent of water ...

It didn’t take but a spark and a stiff breeze to turn Justin Mitchell’s summer upside down. During the first few hours of the Gold Mountain Fire, Mitchell — who runs a horseback guiding outfit in the ...

Surveying a sprawling map of the northern San Juans last week, Mike Smith was deep in a geometry of fire. Fingers tracing fire lines and ridges, Smith – the current incident commander over Gold Mounta...

Federal program could offer nearly $3 million — if cash-poor leaders can find matching dollars Ouray County could receive nearly $3 million in federal funding to protect homes, roads and other infrast...

An experienced firefighting pilot who was pulling water from Silver Jack Reservoir to battle the Gold Mountain Fire died Sunday when his helicopter plunged into the reservoir northeast of Ridgway. Nic...

Hotshot Jesse Eaves calls it “The Great Race.” At the small tent city along U.S. Highway 550, Eaves starts each day with a 5 a.m. wakeup call. Thus begins an eight-minute sprint for him and his Califo...

Editor's note: This story has been changed to correctly indicate the change in the team overseeing the fire response. The pilot who died when his aircraft went down in Silver Jack Reservoir Sunday was...

Residents forced to flee the Gold Mountain Fire north of Ouray nearly two weeks ago returned to charred landscapes but fully intact homes Wednesday, an indication that authorities believe the threat h...

A scaled-back Fourth of July celebration of the 250th birthday of the United States and 150th birthday of Ouray attracted thousands to the city, despite the cancellation of fireworks, water fights and...

The U.S. Forest Service this afternoon expanded the closure area in the Uncompahgre National Forest east of Ridgway, as the Gold Mountain Fire makes another big run. The original closure largely encom...

A wildfire that started as a wisp of smoke on a cliffside just north of Ouray last weekend exploded to more than 15,000 acres by Wednesday, driven by winds north to the Cimarron Range east of Ridgway....