<P> The Waldo Canyon fire started as a brush fire about noon on June 23 , 2012 in a valley of Rampart Range in the Pike National Forest , about 3 miles ( 4.8 km ) west of Colorado Springs and north of U.S. Highway 24 . The fire , first spotted and caught on video by cyclists on the range , spread quickly and reached one of the ridges . Air support was requested at 12 : 24 p.m. by the Colorado Springs Fire Department . Helicopters began dropping water on the fire two days after the fire began . Erratic winds caused the fire to spread rapidly in the northwest and south directions . By 3 p.m. , the fire grew to 600 acres spreading towards the towns of Chipita Park , Green Mountain Falls , and Cascade , Colorado . It also spread towards the western and northwestern areas of the Colorado Springs area and Manitou Springs . Residents began to evacuate as the fire intensified . Planes dropped retardant slurry on what they believed was the Pyramid Mountain Fire , which was a less than 20 acre fire in the same area the night before . As the fire intensified , flames seemed to reach 150 feet above the treetops . </P>
<P> The Waldo Canyon fire started as a brush fire about noon on June 23 , 2012 in a valley of Rampart Range in the Pike National Forest , about 3 miles ( 4.8 km ) west of Colorado Springs and north of U.S. Highway 24 . The fire , first spotted and caught on video by cyclists on the range , spread quickly and reached one of the ridges . Air support was requested at 12 : 24 p.m. by the Colorado Springs Fire Department . Helicopters began dropping water on the fire two days after the fire began . Erratic winds caused the fire to spread rapidly in the northwest and south directions . By 3 p.m. , the fire grew to 600 acres spreading towards the towns of Chipita Park , Green Mountain Falls , and Cascade , Colorado . It also spread towards the western and northwestern areas of the Colorado Springs area and Manitou Springs . Residents began to evacuate as the fire intensified . Planes dropped retardant slurry on what they believed was the Pyramid Mountain Fire , which was a less than 20 acre fire in the same area the night before . As the fire intensified , flames seemed to reach 150 feet above the treetops . </P>
what started the waldo canyon fire in colorado
what started the waldo canyon fire in colorado
a brush fire
a brush fire