More homeowners to hear fate of homes this afternoon

Fire officials continue to assess the damage to homes caused by the High Park Fire and will provide an update on to residents of Old Flowers Road, Whale Rock, Tip Top, Rist Creek, Spring Valley and Paradise Park at the Friday afternoon citizens’ meeting at The Ranch in Loveland.

Officials do not anticipate reopening Cloudy Pass, Mill Canyon or Soldier Canyon today. These areas are still being evaluated and more information may be known on Saturday, according to the Larimer County Sheriff’s Department.

Poudre Valley REA reported this morning that crews were able to restore power to Redstone Canyon and McMurry Ranch on Thursday. The power lines were repaired in Soldier Canyon and Mill Canyon, but fire authorities did not allow these lines to be energized due to possible hazard to firefighters.

PVREA repair crews are currently working in the burn areas in Poudre Canyon and along Rist Canyon Road, Davis Ranch Road, Stove Prairie Road and other areas as permitted by fire management authorities. Service has been restored to the West Fort Collins Water storage unit and it is anticipated service will be restored to the Gateway Water Plant Friday. The line serving the communications towers on Buckhorn Mountain has suffered significant damage. Rebuilding this line and other critical infrastructure will commence as soon as crews can safely access the site, according to the PVREA website.

After the 3 p.m. citizens’ briefing, the principals and staff of the Poudre School District schools in the area affected by the fire invite the community to a picnic at the Cache La Poudre Middle School in LaPorte, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. A number of local businesses have donated food and drinks, and there will be music and fun for the whole family.

CLPMS Principal Skip Caddoo said if the citizens’ meeting runs long, the picnic will go longer, too.