Please see the attached area closure order and map for the Mullen Fire on the Medicine Bow National Forest. This was updated the evening of Saturday, Sept. 26 in cooperation with local authorities due to public/firefighter safety and fire growth potential.
 
The area closure now includes the entire southern Snowy Range in Albany and Carbon Counties, Wyo. The Mullen Fire area closure applies to all National Forest System land, recreation sites, trails, and roads within the closure boundaries.
Private land owners within the area closure boundaries will be contacted by Albany County authorities regarding pre-evacuation and evacuation notices. Once private land owners have left the area closure, they may not re-enter the area until a process is developed by Albany County and the USDA Forest Service. 
 
The fire is under management of the Rocky Mountain Blue Incident Management Team.

Mandatory Evacuation: South Centennial Valley
Albany County Sheriff's Office is announcing a mandatory evacuation, effective immediately for the east of Hwy 11 along Sheep Mountain, from Fox Creek Road, north to Hecht creek.  Please gather pets and belongings and evacuate the area. The Albany County Sheriff's Office will have deputies on scene. If you need housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499. Contact Albany County Emergency Management Agency at (307) 721-1815 only if you need evacuation assistance. If you have an emergency dial or text 9-1-1. More information available at http://www.co.albany.wy.us Due to fire conditions, the preferred evacuation route is north on Hwy 11 to WYO 130. Then east on 130.
 
Evacuation of Sheep Mountain and Lake Hattie Area
Albany County Sheriff's Office is announcing a mandatory evacuation, effective immediately areas near Sheep Mountain to Lake Hattie Reservoir and North of HWY-230.  Please gather pets and belongings and evacuate the area. The Albany County Sheriff's Office will have deputies on scene. If you need housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499. Contact Albany County Emergency Management Agency at (307) 721-1815 only if you need evacuation assistance. If you have an emergency dial or text 9-1-1. More information available at http://www.co.albany.wy.us Due to fire conditions, the preferred evacuation route is HWY 130 and travel East.

Mandatory Evacuation: WY HWY 10 Corridor to Colorado Border
Albany County Sheriff's Office is announcing a mandatory evacuation, effective immediately, for the Wyoming HWY 10 corridor to the Colorado border. Please gather pets and belongings and evacuate the area. The Albany County Sheriff's Office will have deputies on scene. If you need housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499. Contact Albany County Emergency Management Agency at (307) 721-1815 only if you need evacuation assistance. If you have an emergency dial or text 9-1-1. More information available at http://www.co.albany.wy.us 

Mandatory Evacuation: WY HWY 230 Corridor: Woods Landing to Lake Hattie Reservoir
Albany County Sheriff's Office is announcing a mandatory evacuation, effective immediately areas near Sheep Mountain to Lake Hattie Reservoir and North of HWY-230.  Please gather pets and belongings and evacuate the area. The Albany County Sheriff's Office will have deputies on scene. If you need housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499. Contact Albany County Emergency Management Agency at (307) 721-1815 only if you need evacuation assistance. If you have an emergency dial or text 9-1-1. More information available at http://www.co.albany.wy.us Due to fire conditions, the preferred evacuation route is HWY 230 and travel East. Big Hollow Road to Hwy 130 and travel east is an option.

Virtual Community Q&A TODAY at 5 p.m.: The meeting will be livestreamed on the Mullen Fire Information page (https://www.facebook.com/MullenFire)
Summary  
Powerful and gusty west winds caused extreme fire behavior through the night. This morning, the fire front is approximately one mile north of Fox Park, extending east to just south of Lake Owen. The subdivisions of Keystone and Lake Creek were impacted by the fire. Firefighters were able to access areas after the flaming front passed and continued to perform structure protection actions. Albany County officials worked closely with firefighters to evacuate several communities. Residents near the fire area should remain alert to rapidly changing conditions. Damage assessment information is not yet available. 

Today, firefighters are continuing an aggressive effort to protect structures in areas where the fire has already passed. Structure protection firefighters will work ahead of the fire in the areas of Albany, Rambler, Rob Roy, Woods Landing, Fox Park, and Foxborough. Firefighters will also be in the Centennial area preparing structures in the event of a wind shift. Aerial support will continue as weather conditions allow.
Fire Conditions and Weather
The strong wind event will continue today. Strong northwest winds, gusting to 50 mph, are expected to cause active fire behavior and fire spread. Humidity will be higher today with scattered cloud cover and lower temperatures. However, the strong northwest wind will override any benefits from the humidity and cloud cover. Fire activity will remain extreme. 

Mandatory evacuations

• Foxborough community
• Fox Park to Albany South through the valley to Fox Creek Road, including areas west of Hwy 11.
• Middle Fork Canyon
• Woods Landing Corridor
• Lake Creek community 
• Rambler community
• Rob Roy community
• Keystone communities: Keystone proper, lower Keystone, Langford/Ricker, Moore's Gulch, and 507C cabin grouping

Pre-evacuation notice

• Properties in the Forest closure
• Private land along Fox Creek Road
• Albany and Centennial, extending northwest along Highway 130 
• All areas west of Highway 11 in the valley.

Closures and Restrictions
At this time, three Wyoming state roads are closed south of Wyoming 11 between Wyoming 130 and Albany. Wyoming 10 is closed north of Woods Landing to the Colorado border. Wyoming 230 (CO 127) is closed starting at the WY/CO border north to Woods Landing in Albany County, WY. Wyoming 230 between Encampment and the CO state line (CO 125) remains open. There is no estimate on when these roads might reopen.
 Forest Closure A Forest area closure is in effect surrounding the Mullen Fire. For details, see the new Forest Closure Order (https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/photos/WYMBF/2020-09-17-1921-Savage-Run-Fire/related_files/pict20200825-175313-0.pdf) and the new Forest Closure Area Map (https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/photos/WYMBF/2020-09-17-1921-Savage-Run-Fire/related_files/pict20200825-175227-0.pdf)  

Stage 2 Fire Restrictions are in effect for the fire area

• Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National Grassland: https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd786902.pdf  
• Albany County: https://www.co.albany.wy.us/247/Fire-Restrictions

As of Saturday morning, 9-26-2020, the following roads are closed near the Mullen Fire:

• WYO 11 between the WYO 130 interchange and the town of Albany.
• WYO 10 near Jelm (between WYO 230 near Woods Landing and the CO state line. CO folks - CO 103 is closed once it crosses into WY)
• WYO 230 between the Colorado state line and Woods Landing (CO folks: CO 127 closes once it crosses into WY)

There is no estimate on when these roads might reopen. For real-time info about road closures and conditions, see the Wyoming Travel Information Map at https://map.wyoroad.info/wtimap/ Wyoming Department of Transportation reminds you that parking on roadways is prohibited and delays WYDOT from opening roads when that becomes possible.

Today, powerful west winds, with gusts to 50 mph, caused extreme fire behavior and drove the fire far to the east. The fire is still actively burning.

No structure damage or losses have been confirmed. However, the fire has impacted the Lake Creek and lower Keystone communities, and firefighters have not yet been able to re-enter those areas to assess conditions.

Due to dangerous wind conditions, aerial firefighting was suspended at 2:00 pm. Ground firefighters continued an aggressive effort to protect structures.

Due to the high winds and wind direction and recommendations from the incident management team, the US Forest Service officials and Albany County government agencies took the following actions late this afternoon:

Expanded Forest Closure 
The Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests announced a new forest area closure order that significantly expands the closure area to the south and east. For details, see the new Forest Closure Order (https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/photos/WYMBF/2020-09-17-1921-Savage-Run-Fire/related_files/pict20200825-175313-0.pdf) and the new Forest Closure Area Map (https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/photos/WYMBF/2020-09-17-1921-Savage-Run-Fire/related_files/pict20200825-175227-0.pdf) 

New pre-evacuation notices

In conjunction with US Forest Service officials, Albany County issued a pre-evacuation notice for private properties within the expanded forest area closure.

New mandatory evacuations
Later in the afternoon, Albany County Emergency Management Agency and Albany County Sheriff's Office announced the following new mandatory evacuations:

• The Foxborough community
• Fox Park to Albany South through the valley to Fox Creek Road, including areas west of Hwy 11. This also includes Middle Fork Canyon.  
• The Woods Landing Corridor

The existing mandatory evacuations also remain in effect:

• Lake Creek community
• Rambler community
• Rob Roy community
• Keystone communities: Keystone proper, lower Keystone, Langford/Ricker, Moore's Gulch, and 507C cabin grouping

Outlook for this evening

Strong winds will continue to expand the fire through the night, and stronger west-northwest winds are expected tomorrow. Firefighters will continue protecting structures until late tonight.

Albany County Sheriff's Office is announcing a mandatory evacuation, effective immediately, for the Fox Creek Road area and Woods Landing area. Please gather pets and belongings and evacuate the area. The Albany County Sheriff's Office will have deputies on scene. If you need housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499. If you need assistance with evacuation, please contact Albany County Emergency Management Agency at (307) 721-1815. If you have an emergency dial or text 9-1-1.

The Type 2 Incident Management Team has growing concern due to high winds and wind direction. Because of this, Albany County Emergency Management Agency and Albany County Sheriff's Office is announcing a mandatory evacuation, effective immediately, of Fox Park to Albany South through the valley to Fox Creek Road, including areas west of Hwy 11. This also includes Middle Fork Canyon. Please gather pets and belongings and evacuate the area. The Albany County Sheriff's Office will have deputies on scene. If you need housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499. If you need assistance with evacuations, please contact the Albany County Emergency Management Agency.

Announcement from Albany County, Wyoming at 5:33 p.m. Friday, September 25:
 
Due to concerns from the Type 2 incident management team, as well as the forest service, Albany County Emergency Management Agency and the Albany County Sheriff’s Office have ordered a mandatory evacuation of the Foxborough area. Please evacuate the area as soon as you are physically able. The Albany County Sheriff's Office will have deputies on scene. If you need housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499. If you need assistance with evacuations, please contact the Albany County Emergency Management Agency.  

 

Due to the changing winds and limited visibility, at the direction of the forest fire management team and to support the forest service closure area, Albany County Emergency Management Agency and Albany County Sheriff’s Office are requesting all individuals within the pre-evacuation zone of Fox Park, Pelton Creek Cabins, Wold Tract, Mountain Home, and Wycolo to not return home at this time, due to forest closures. If you are currently at your property, you are allowed to stay; however, once you leave, you will not be allowed to return. This is to better allow Sheriff deputies and the forest service to conduct operations to ensure all hunters are out of the area. Albany County EMA and Albany County Sheriff’s Office will try and set up a system for individuals within those areas to return to grab items and prepare their homes but a timeline for this is still unclear. If you need assistance with housing, please contact the Red Cross at (970)-440-7499.

Please see the attached area closure order and map for the Mullen Fire on the Medicine Bow National Forest.
This was updated at 2 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 25 due to public/firefighter safety and fire growth potential.The area closure impacts the southern Snowy Range in Albany and Carbon Counties, Wyoming.
It was developed in cooperation with local authorities based on firefighter/public safety and potential fire growth.
The Mullen Fire area closure applies to all National Forest System land, recreation sites, trails, and roads within the closure boundaries.
Private land owners within the area closure boundaries should be in contact with Albany County authorities regarding pre-evacuation and evacuation notices. Please see attached documents.
Once private land owners have left the area closure, they may not re-enter the area until a process is developed by Albany County and the USDA Forest Service.
The fire is under management of the Rocky Mountain Blue Incident Management Team.
Official source of information for this fire is InciWeb, https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7208/.

At midday today, the #MullenFire_WY continues to grow, but it is not possible to estimate the new size of the fire. The most prominent smoke column is coming from the south end of the fire, where the fire behavior is highest.

Firefighters are putting intense effort into protecting all of the communities along the Centennial Valley. Aircraft are being used heavily to support the structure protection operation on the ground.

According to Incident Commander Jared Hohn, “Firefighters are working tirelessly. They’re doing amazing work with the resources they have, in very adverse conditions.”