Major Fire Breaks Out Near Roundup

A fast moving grass fire has sparked southwest of Roundup this afternoon and forced the evacuation of hundreds of homes.  Q2′s Jay Kohn tells me that the large blaze has already burned around a thousand acres.  It started around 3 o’clock this afternoon and may have been sparked by lightning that was in the area last night.  Strong gusty winds winds are fanning the flames and the fire is spreading rapidly in the Harper Coulee area around Goulding Creek Road.  The Bureau of Land Management reported to us about 4:45p.m. the blaze had jumped the road.  Fire crews are having a tough time trying to get fire equipment to the area and officials are evacuating around 700 homeowners in the path of the fire.  We’ll will keep you updated as we learn more.