Video: Firefighters may be battling Colorado wildfires for days "Our plan is to be patient and work with this fire in a phased situation as it moves on its terms, which it's going to, and we'll keep up with it, " said Incident Commander Bill Hahnenberg. And that may mean we're doing this for days. The Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper signed an executive order on Thursday banning open burning and the private use of fireworks throughout the state in the hope of reducing the risks of more wildfires starting. Justin Smith, Larimer County Sheriff, warned that he would not be sending any of his officers in harms away if it was not safe enough to send residents back to their homes. He spoke as more than 1,200 people helped fight the roughly 80-square-mile High Park fire in northern Colorado that has forced hundreds of residents to leave their homes since it started Saturday. Residents of about 80 more homes north of the fire, who had been warned to be ready to leave at a moment's notice if needed, were told to evacuate Thursday evening after a smouldering hot spot erupted into 200-foot-high (60 metre) flames. The flare-up occurred on the south side of the Poudre River Canyon, and the evacuation order covered homes about a mile (1.6 kilometres) north of the river.