Wildfire burning near Western Slope coal mine closes highway between Meeker, Craig

A wildfire that sparked near a Western Slope coal mine closed a state highway between Meeker and Craig executives announced Friday Related Articles I- reopens near Eagle as firefighters make progress on Red Canyon fire Man pleads guilty to starting Bucktail fire in Montrose County by trying to cremate dog Grass fire burning along I- near RTD station under control authorities say Suspect arrested in Summit County wildfire that closed I- Federal agencies are hiring seasonal firefighters in Colorado as summer approaches Moffat County fire crews were alerted to a brush fire burning near the Colowyo Mine off of Colorado at p m the sheriff s office noted in an alert The fire is about a mile west of the coal mine s guard shack near the highway and County Road Colorado is closed in both directions because of the fire according to the Colorado Department of Transportation The highway is closed between Nine Mile Gap and County Road miles north of Meeker The Bureau of Land Management s fire dashboard shows the fire is estimated at acres and the cause is unknown Firefighters from the Moffat County Sheriff s Office BLM and Craig are fighting the fire This is a emerging story and may be updated Get more Colorado news by signing up for our Mile High Roundup email newsletter