Colorado wildfire forces evacuations

A wind-driven wildfire in northeastern Colorado prompted authorities to evacuate 200-300 homes Sunday, officials said. The Yuma County fire destroyed two homes and left three firefighters injured, Denver's KUSA-TV reported. Sheriff Chad Day said one firefighter suffered minor facial burns, another had minor burns on the arms and the third was treated for smoke inhalation, KUSA-TV said. Yuma County sheriff's deputies said the evacuation zone was about 16 miles long and 14 miles wide and included the town of Eckley. "It just keeps rearing its ugly head," area resident Gary Hoffner said. "The smoke and the dirt are blowing so bad." The TV station said winds were gusting between 50 and 70 mph. Day said there were several traffic accidents in the area caused by distracted drivers looking at the fire. The cause of the fire was under investigation but a local newspaper attributed it to a downed power line, KUSA-TV said. It wasn't clear how many acres had been burned.