Smoke may be visible northwest of Boulder.

Boulder County, Colo. - Boulder County Parks & Open Space and the Sheriff’s Office Fire Management Program will close Heil Valley Ranch on Sunday, Nov. 17 to conduct a prescribed burn northwest of Boulder. Heil Valley Ranch Open Space is located between US 36/Foothills Hwy and SH 7, from roughly Lefthand Canyon Rd. to the Town of Lyons.

The park will reopen as soon as it’s deemed safe to do so by fire personnel.

Fire crews will burn approximately 10 acres in the Wapiti Burn Unit, which is located near the Wapiti and Ponderosa Loop Trails (map PDF).

This prescribed burn will be used as a training exercise for firefighters to gain experience using controlled ignitions. Firefighting resources will surround the area during the duration of the prescribed burn and will remain on-site until the fire is determined to be out. The project area is well contained by trails and roads.

Smoke and flames may be visible for days to weeks following a prescribed burn. There may be heavy smoke in the air. Please do not call 911 since a prescribed burn is not an emergency.

Smoke from prescribed fires may affect health. The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment Wood Smoke and Health website and the Boulder County Public Health Wildfire Air Quality & Health website provide tips on how to protect health from smoke.

For additional information, please visit www.BoulderCountyOpenSpace.org/burns or contact Boulder County Parks & Open Space Senior Forester Stefan Reinold at 303-678-6202 or sreinold@bouldercounty.org.