Fire warning triggers immediate evacuation near Blair-Wallis in Albany County

An extreme fire warning ordered immediate evacuation within a half-mile of FS 707A and Headquarters Road near Blair-Wallis after fire broke out in the Blair-Wallis picnic area and Horse Camp. The alert went out at 5:13 p.m. July 1 and expired at 6:13 p.m. the same day, using blunt language: “GO! Evacuate Now.”

The warning covered a recreation corridor west of Laramie in the Medicine Bow National Forest, where the Blair Picnic Site sits in the Pole Mountain Area. The Blair Picnic Site has picnic tables, potable water and a vault toilet, and is reached from Laramie by taking Interstate 80 east 20 miles to Exit 232, then Old U.S. Highway 30 East and Blair-Wallis Road for about 6 miles. The same network of roads serves a broad recreation landscape that attracts campers, day users and backcountry visitors across the Pole Mountain Area.

Albany County had already been operating under partial fire restrictions that began March 25 under resolution #2026-001 and were set to run no later than Nov. 1 unless lifted or reimposed. Albany County faced a potentially severe to extreme fire situation because of heavy fuel loads and dry conditions that could over-extend local firefighting capability. The county lifted restrictions on May 22, with conditions to be watched constantly and limits able to return at any time.

County officials use Albany County Alerts, the Albany County Emergency Management Agency and the county incidents page to push emergency notices, shelter information and road-closure updates. The City of Laramie fire department also responds into Albany County under an operational agreement.

Albany County has had other wildfire-related evacuations and pre-evacuations, including the 2024 Bear Creek Fire and a 2025 Laramie wildfire that required sheltering and a multi-station response.