The shrill ring of fire alarms Thursday afternoon was followed by the buzz of chainsaws and the sound of engines as crews from several agencies worked throughout the night to cut fire lines and shuttle water to a fire on a Dolores cliffside.

Dan Ochocki, a Colorado Forest Service district forester, estimated that between 18 and 20 acres of the Dolores river valley was engulfed in the blaze, located two miles east of Dolores off Highway 145. Strong winds threatened to spread the fire further out of control as it quickly climbed through the piñon and juniper trees lining the valley.

Ochocki said that by 11 a.m. Friday crews had 80 percent of the fire contained.

"They had fire lines cut almost all the way around it this morning and I’m sure they have it all contained by now," he said Friday morning.

Despite the size, however, no injuries occurred and minimal structural damage was done by the flames, according to Ochocki.

"There is a sawmill up there that is owned by Val Truelson which was threatened," said Ochocki. "There was damage to some planks and a pile of sawdust as well as a little bit to the building," he said.

Deanna Truelson said that the building did not sustain any damage but that her husband was at the mill looking for hotspots on Friday.

Cortez Fire Protection District Fire Marshal Frank Cavaliere said that the incident is still being investigated and that a final cause has not been determined.

"I don’t want to speculate on the cause," he said.

Lieutenant Kalvin Boggs, a spokesman for the Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office, said that firefighters and volunteers from Dolores, Cortez, Pleasant View, Mancos, Lewis-Arriola, Rico, Dove Creek and Towaoc as well as the Forest Service all responded to the blaze.

Boggs said a preliminary investigation showed that the fire may have started after embers from controlled trash burn ignited a nearby pile of sawdust.

Cavaliere said crews fought the fire for most of Thursday night.

"Local firefighters fought the initial blaze which ended around seven o’clock and then stayed until about midnight, and then Forest Service crews came and stayed until early Friday morning," Cavaliere said.

Cavaliere said that because there were no nearby water hookups, fire teams had to establish a tanker shuttle.

"One tanker goes to a nearby water source to fill up while another [tanker] is used to fight the fire," he said. "As one tanker runs out of water, a full one rotates in."

Cavaliere said that a slurry bomber and spotter plane were also sent in from Jeffco Airport in Denver and made three passes over the blaze, dropping 6,000 gallons of a fire retardant solution.

"The bomber was used mostly to prevent any further spreading of the fire," said Cavaliere. "By the time it got there the ground crews had a good handle on it."

Ochocki warned anyone considering doing a controlled burn to be aware of the conditions around them.