Boulder County firefighters have extinguished a small fire that began burning early this morning on Peewink Mountain. Â
According to a press release from the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, members of the Sugarloaf, Fourmile and Nederland fire departments, the Sheriff’s Office and the United States Forest Service responded to a report of the fire at about 3 a.m. Â
Reagan Cloudman, a spokeswoman for the United States Forest Service, said the fire began as a slash pile burn on Forest Service property that spread farther than anticipated when winds picked up in the area. The fire remained on Forest Service property, never spreading to more than a quarter acre, Cloudman said. Â
Cloudman also said that about 18 firefighters were sent to the area, and approximately 10 will remain on the scene throughout the day to clean up any continued smoldering. Â
Snow cover on the mountain helped to prevent further spreading of the fire. Cloudman said that a certain level of precipitation or snow cover is one of the conditions the Forest Service must consider before conducting slash pile burns. Â
