Cause Of Fire Near Cheyenne On Friday Under Investigation

Laramie County Emergency Management Director Jeanine West says the cause of a Friday fire in the Horse Creek/Happy Jack Road area near Cheyenne was still under investigation as of Saturday at noon.

She says the Laramie County Sheriff's Office is handling the investigation along with the Laramie County Fire Authority, but as of yet, the cause of the blaze is undetermined.

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West made the comments on the "Weekend In Wyoming'' program on KGAB radio on Saturday. You can hear that entire interview in the audio file attached to this article.

West also says the final estimate of the blaze could end up being higher than the 6, 600-acre figure compiled so far. But she says the good news, aside from the fact that there were no fatalities, was that no homes were destroyed. Three structures were damaged. That damage consisted of a garage being damaged, windows being blown out, and a deck being damaged.

Another 60 or so properties had less severe damage, consisting of such things as grass being burned.

The Fire Could Have Been Much Worse

She says had it not been for the fast, coordinated response to the fire, it could have been much worse. ''It could have taken out entire neighborhoods in those areas of Happy Jack and then also Horse Creek...if it wasn't able to get stopped from there, it could have come closer to town and we could see additional neighborhoods be affected, and businesses.''

She says the fire probably would have been stopped before coming into Cheyenne.

Firefighters are expected to remain on the scene through the weekend, mopping up hotspots and making sure the fire does not re-ignite. A Red Flag Warning for critical fire danger is in effect for Cheyenne and other areas of southeast Wyoming until 6 p.m.