Close to 180 inmates were evacuated from their correctional facility in Rifle after the threat from a nearby wildfire grew too

A Colorado prison was evacuated due to a fast-growing wildfire that’s already one of the largest in state history, officials said.

DENVER (KDVR) —  179 individuals in custody at Rifle Correctional Center are being evacuated due to the Lee Fire in Rio Blanco County, Colorado. The Colorado Department of Corrections said on Saturday in a press release that the agency is transferring individuals within the correctional center in Garfield County to “other secure facilities outside of the fire-affected area.