COLSTRIP - A wildfire burning south of Colstrip has closed a portion of Highway 39.
The Richard Spring Fire was first reported on Sunday afternoon on private land 10 miles south of Colstrip. The Bureau of Land Management estimates the fire size at 35,000 acres.
The highway was initially closed Sunday, then reopened with reduced speeds between mile marker 9 and 13 on Monday morning. The highway was closed again late Monday morning when the fire again approached the highway.
