US EditionLee Fire Becomes Colorado's 5th-Largest Wildfire as State Faces New Era of Massive Fires
The Lee fire reached 30% containment with extensive firefighting resources deployed amid dry conditions fueling rapid spread, officials said.
- The Lee Fire southwest of Meeker, as of Tuesday morning, is 116,859 acres and the fifth largest wildfire in Colorado history.
- Precipitation at just 5% of normal over the past month, combined with dry conditions and pinyon, juniper, and oak brush, fueled rapid spread on Aug. 2, according to Rose Schoenfeld.
- More than 1,000 personnel, supported by 12 aircraft, 24 hand crews and 60 engines, fought the Lee fire, with a 302nd Airlift Wing plane dropping 2,769 gallons of retardant on Sunday.
- The Colorado Department of Corrections evacuated the Rifle Correctional Center, moving 179 inmates, and mandatory evacuation orders were issued for Zones 20, 22, 25, 50, 51, 62, 63, 64 and 65 on Sunday.
- FEMA Region 8 Acting Administrator Katherine Fox said federal resources remain available, as Gov. Jared Polis signed an executive order Friday memorializing a previous emergency declaration.
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Steamboat Pilot & Today
Summit Daily NewsNow the 5th largest wildfire in Colorado history, the Lee Fire grows to more than 110,000 acres as ‘extreme fire behavior’ expected to continue
Firefighters made progress toward containing one of the largest wildfires in Colorado history over the weekend, but officials said “extreme fire weather” is expected to continue Monday and throughout the week. The Lee Fire had burned 113,378 acres in Rio Blanco County — an area that is larger than Denver County — as of Monday, according to the complex incident management team responding to the fire. That makes the wildfire the fifth largest in C…
Colorado Sun
Delta County IndependentLee fire now 5th-largest in state history, burning more than 113k acres in northwestern Colorado
Fire crews battling two large blazes in northwestern Colorado continue to gain containment on the smaller Elk fire burning east of Meeker, but the Lee fire blew up over the weekend, doubling to more than 113,000 acres. Both fires were started by lightning Aug. 2. On Saturday firefighters started to make progress containing them. Work on the Elk fire has reached 30% containment as the fire remained at 14,635 acres, officials reported Monday morni…
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