Brush fire ignites south of Cortez on red flag day

A brush fire quickly spread to about a quarter-acre south of Cortez on U.S. Highway 160/491. The suspected cause was a tossed cigarette from a vehicle, said Jay Balfour, chief of the Cortez Fire Protection District. A passerby noticed the flames and alerted a nearby business. Cody Meier and Liam Cooper, of Rocky Mountain Spray Liners, ran a hose to the fire and began dousing it as firefighters arrived. “It flared up quick,” Meier said. Traffic was delayed in both directions for about 15 minutes.

Traffic was delayed Monday afternoon on South Broadway as firefighters put out a brush fire. A tossed cigarette was the suspected cause, fire officials said.