San Juan National Forest Reopens – Stage 2 Fire Restrictions Still in Effect

The San Juan National Forest has reopened after being closed to the public due to extreme fire danger.

The forest and some surrounding Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land near Durango which was closed on June 12th, reopened at 3 p.m. on Thursday (June 21). Officials say fire danger is still high, but lowered restrictions to Stage 2 allowing many areas to reopen.

The National Forest Service says even though the San Juan Forest is open, the Forest Service and BLM say there are areas near the 416 and Burro Canyon fires that, for safety reasons, will remain closed.

Officials say the reopening comes after rainfall in the area last weekend merited reevaluation of the closure. The results from that evaluation were favorable enough to reduce Fire Restrictions from Stage 3 to Stage 2.

Monitoring will continue and if conditions deteriorate, there is still a possibility of another closure. People who travel and recreate in the reopened areas are asked to be extremely careful and observe all restrictions still in place.

Source: USDA Forest Service