200-foot flames nearing homes at Waldo Canyon Fire

Flames threaten a home in the Waldo Canyon Fire in El Paso County, Colo. June 25, 2012

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. — New evacuation orders have been issued for areas affected by the Waldo Canyon Fire Tuesday morning as flames are now reportedly nearing homes.

The Colorado Springs Gazette is reporting that Incident Command scanner traffic was panicky Tuesday morning, describing 200-foot flames near Cedar Heights and flames 200 yards from houses.

“Brush trucks converging,” the Gazette reported. “Crews scrambling to scene.”

Mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for every home north of Manitou Ave. and west of Garden Dr.

Multiple news outlets are reporting that the Waldo Canyon Fire has been named the nation’s top priority fire — not because of its size, but because of the amount of the population it could affect.