A wildfire in the Black Forest area northeast of Colorado Springs is burning homes, and another fire that led to the evacuation of Royal Gorge Bridge & Park has burned three structures.

Video from a helicopter above the Black Forest area shows several homes in a heavily wooded area burning Tuesday.

To the south, the Bureau of Land Management says three structures have been lost in a fire that has charred 300 acres south of the Royal Gorge Bridge and the Arkansas River.

Embers from the fire are reaching north of the river.

Royal Gorge Bridge & Park spokeswoman Peggy Gair tells The Gazette that several hundred people have been evacuated from the park.

Meanwhile, in northern Colorado, a wildfire in Rocky Mountain National Park is growing and sending out large plumes of smoke.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

A wildfire charged through the Black Forest area northeast of Colorado Springs, Colo., on Tuesday, igniting several large houses as its flames threatened a neighborhood set in dense forest where some home values top $1 million.

A thick plume of gray smoke could be seen from Denver, about 65 miles to the north.

Video from a helicopter showed flames engulfing several large homes. Homes in the Black Forest area are on sites between 2 to 5 acres each. Cathedral Pines, a neighborhood with several pricey homes with views of Pikes Peak, is among the areas evacuated because of the blaze.

Fire managers requested aerial firefighting resources, and the Air Force Academy was among those sending ground resources to help fight the flames.

There were no immediate reports of injuries in the Black Forest Fire, said Lt. Jeff Kramer of the El Paso County sheriff's department. He didn't know how many homes had been evacuated.

Kramer said it was too soon to say what caused the blaze. He said residents were being notified to leave by automated phone calls and in some cases in-person visits from sheriff's deputies.

"To protect life is certainly the ultimate priority here," Kramer said.

The Black Forest Fire was one of at least three significant wildfires burning in Colorado amid gusty winds and record-breaking hot, dry weather.

A fire burning on an estimated 300 acres south of the Royal Gorge Bridge and Arkansas River led to the evacuation of the Royal Gorge Bridge & Park near Canon City, the Bureau of Land Management said. Park spokeswoman Peggy Gair told The Gazette (http://bit.ly/13z4AVJ) the evacuations affected several hundred people at the park, which closed Tuesday afternoon. Evacuations also were in effect from Parkdale to Soda Point, north of the Royal Gorge, the BLM said.

The 360-acre Royal Gorge Bridge & Park claims the world's highest suspension bridge at 956 feet, spanning a quarter mile across the Arkansas River.

In northern Colorado, crews were trying to suppress a wildfire sparked by lightning Monday in Rocky Mountain National Park that was growing and sending out large plumes of smoke in the less-used western end of the park. No immediate size estimate was available. Several trails were closed as the fire burned through subalpine grassland and forest.

The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning covering southern Colorado due to hot, dry, windy conditions that were ripe for fast-growing wildfires.

Wildfires were also keeping crews busy to the south in New Mexico, where a new blaze in the Pecos Wilderness north of Santa Fe more than quadrupled in size Tuesday. The 1,500-acre Jaroso Fire was one of several that ignited in New Mexico as hot, dry conditions persisted there.