A monsoonal weather system is expected to bring rain to Colorado’s drought-stricken Western Slope in the coming days, dampening wildfires that have charred hundreds of square miles but also raising the risk of flash flooding, gusty winds and lightning.
That includes the La Plata fire burning in the Pike-San Isabel National Forests near Leadville, which was sparked by an abandoned campfire and has grown to 132 acres with no containment. The area received almost half an inch of rain overnight, and growth is slowed because it’s burning over 11,000 feet of elevation, fire officials said Saturday.
U.S. Forest Service officials closed parts of the national forests because of the fire, including the Dexter Point and Sunnyside day-use areas. A map of the full closure area is available online.
Slightly drier weather should give way to long-delayed rain starting Sunday, Derby fire incident meteorologist Ryan Fliehman said Saturday. Monsoonal rain typically hits the Western Slope midsummer, and its absence has worsened extreme drought in the region.
“I think we are starting to move in the right direction to getting that traditional monsoonal push we would get in late July and early August,” Fliehman said.
No growth was reported on five otherwildfires burning across western Colorado as of Saturday morning. The Lee, Elk, Derby, Stoner Mesa and Crosho fires have together burned more than 168,000 acres, or about 264 square miles, and threatened hundreds of homes, evacuated Colorado communities and prompted state, U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land closures.
Jump to: Lee and Elk fires | Derby fire | Stoner Mesa fire | Crosho fire | Air quality impacts
Lee and Elk fires, near Meeker
All mandatory evacuations were lifted Saturday for the Lee fire between Meeker and Rifle as crews maintained 80% containment on Colorado’s fifth-largest wildfire on record.
The 135,758-acre Lee fire and 14,518-acre Elk fire were sparked by lightning west and east of Meeker on Aug. 2, destroying five homes and 14 outbuildings as a run of extreme drought, high temperatures and wind pushed the fire across 235 square miles of Rio Blanco County.
An influx of cooler weather and moisture helped firefighters steadily increase containment over the past week, and showers and thunderstorms are expected in the days ahead. The storms also increase the risk of gusty winds, frequent lightning and flash flooding along burn scars, fire officials said. Fire crews are prepared to respond to any new fires.
Firefighters have finished most of the work repairing dozer lines and other suppression efforts around the Elk fire, officials said.
A handful of areas along the Colorado 13 corridor were still on pre-evacuation alert Saturday. An updated Lee fire evacuation map from the sheriff’s office is available online.
Sheriff’s officials also reopened County Road 5 along Piceance Creek on Saturday, and U.S. Forest Service officials reopened parts of the White River National Forest near the Elk fire.
Derby fire, in Eagle County
Rain is expected to dampen the quickly spreading Derby fire in Eagle and Garfield counties in the coming days, although too much precipitation may create other problems on the newly charred landscape, fire officials said.
The 4,112-acre Derby fire was discovered on “remote, rugged terrain” in the White River National Forest, about 15 miles from Dotsero in Eagle County on the morning of Aug. 17, according to the U.S. Forest Service. There is no containment on the fire, and mandatory evacuations and pre-evacuations are in place for the northwest corner of Eagle County and an eastern section of Garfield County. Updated Eagle and Garfield County evacuation maps are available online.
Flames started burning in a part of the forest that hasn’t seen wildfire in a long time and is filled with dead and fallen trees, fire behavior analyst Alan Carlson said at a Friday night community meeting.
“Those subalpine fir, when they torch out, they cause hundreds of embers that go downhill and start a bunch of spot fires that can run back up the hill,” Carlson said. Those embers, combined with burned trees rolling downhill, contributed to the fire’s fast spread.
Overnight weather conditions also have not been cool or moist enough to limit fire behavior, with evening down-drafts instead fueling fire growth, Carlson said.
Incoming storm systems could be a mixed bag for firefighters, incident meteorologist Ryan Fliehman said in a Saturday morning update.
“Given the powerful nature of this monsoonal push, we’re going to have a good chance for… moderate to heavy precipitation, and that could potentially raise another concern of the chance of debris flows off the burn scars and flash flooding,” he said.
At least one building has been destroyed by the wildfire, but it’s unclear what type of building it was.
The U.S. Forest Service also expanded closures in the White River National Forest in Eagle and Garfield counties, including southwest of Sweetwater Lake to the west rim of Deep Creek Canyon. Some BLM lands are also closed, including north and west of Gypsum, north of Coffee Pot Road, west of the Colorado River, east of the White River National Forest boundary and south of Derby Creek.
Stoner Mesa fire, near Dolores
Dolores County officials lifted pre-evacuation warnings for people living near the Stoner Mesa fire on Saturday, which is burning on 10,186 acres in a remote section of the San Juan National Forest.
The lightning-sparked wildfire was 32% contained as of Saturday, and a monsoonal storm system is expected to bring rain and winds up to 30 mph during the weekend.
“Sunday brings the highest chances for wetting precipitation,” fire officials wrote Saturday. “Thunderstorms with gusty outflow winds provide an opportunity for active behavior in the morning. Smoldering and creeping fire behavior will be seen over most of the fire area, with the exception being in the Stoner Creek area.”
Large trees are dry enough to torch and make short uphill runs, officials said.
An updated Stoner Mesa fire evacuation map is available online. Sections of the San Juan National Forest also remain closed because of the fire.
Crosho fire, near Yampa
All pre-evacuation warnings were lifted on the 2,072-acre Crosho fire burning on the line between Rio Blanco and Routt counties, west of Yampa, fire officials said Saturday.
The wildfire sparked near Crosho Lake in the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests on Aug. 11 and threatened hundreds of structures before firefighters began increasing containment. The cause of the fire is unknown, and containment increased to 64% on Saturday.
Parts of the national forest remain closed because of the fire, and updated evacuation maps, road and forest closures are available online. Rain and thunderstorms are expected to fall over the fire in the coming week, and crews are focused on strengthening fire lines and repairing suppression work, officials said.
Air-quality impacts
Air-quality alerts for wildfire smoke near the Derby and Stoner Mesa fires are active through Sunday morning, including western Eagle and eastern Garfield counties and Colorado 145 between Dolores and Rico.
Incoming storm systems should help improve air quality near the fires, state public health officials said.
Smoky conditions are most hazardous for young children, older adults and people with heart disease or respiratory illnesses, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
All residents should limit outdoor activity when heavy smoke is present. If visibility drops to 5 miles or less, the smoke has reached unhealthy levels.
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