Lee Fire in northwestern Colorado surpasses 100,000 acres as fire crews get some containment
The Lee Fire, the largest of several wildfires in northwestern Colorado, grew to over 100,000 acres overnight, prompting new evacuations, state fire officials said. On the plus side, fire crews have made some gains in containing the fire, going from 0% to 6% containment.
The fire grew from over 88,000 acres to over 92,000 acres throughout the day on Saturday with no containment. By Sunday morning, federal fire maps showed the Lee Fire at 106,672 acres as of about 8:30 a.m. Weather conditions are expected to help the fire grow on Sunday, according to the Rio Blanco Sheriff's Office.
The Lee Fire is now the sixth-largest single fire in the state's history, according to the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control.
"Near-critical fire weather will return today," the Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team said in a Sunday update. "This will include low relative humidity, periods of gusty winds from the north/northwest and lack of cloud coverage. The very dry fuels with the expected weather could result in extreme fire behavior in some areas of the Lee Fire."
An updated map of the Lee and Elk Fires also showed that the northeastern-most portion of the Lee Fire jumped Highway 13 and is now on the east side of the highway. State fire officials, however, say that area is within the "contained fire edge."
"The primary objective is to keep the fire west of Hwy 13 and north of CR 5," the Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team said. "Under current conditions, this will prove to be a challenge to firefighters."
The Elk Fire, immediately east of the Lee Fire, is also now 14,635 acres, up slightly from its 14,502 around 10 a.m. on Saturday, according to state officials. Containment in that fire is also up to 9%. Over 1,000 people are now involved in the efforts to fight both fires.
For information about evacuation notices, visit facebook.com/rioblancocountysheriffsoffice or the National Interagency Fire Center's website.