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Lee Fire
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 | This article is about a current wildfire where information can change quickly or be unreliable. The latest page updates may not reflect the most up-to-date information. This wildfire is still actively burning, so residents should refer to local authorities for up-to-date information. |
| Lee Fire | |
|---|---|
| Part of the 2025 Colorado wildfires | |
 Lee Fire in August of 2025 | |
| Date(s) | August 2, 2025 – Present |
| Location | Meeker, Colorado |
| Coordinates | 39°57′52″N 108°09′05″W / 39.96444°N 108.15139°W |
| Statistics | |
| Perimeter | 99% contained |
| Burned area | 138,844 acres (56,188 ha) |
| Impacts | |
| Ignition | |
| Cause | Lightning |
| Map | |
 Perimeter of the Lee Fire (map data) | |
  Location in northwest Colorado | |
The Lee Fire is an extremely large active wildfire burning near Meeker, Colorado that began on August 2, 2025. As of August 25, the fire had an active fire perimeter of 138,844 acres (56,188 ha) and is 99% contained.[1][2]
It is the fourth largest wildfire in Colorado history and the third largest wildfire in the United States during the 2025 wildfire season.[3][4]
Fire history
[edit]August
[edit]The Lee Fire was first reported on August 2, 2025 at around 4:59 pm MST.[1]
On August 5, 2025 Colorado Governor Jared Polis issued a state of emergency for four wildfires burning in western Colorado, including the Lee Fire, which had merged overnight with a second lightning-caused fire to grow to 14,000 acres (5,700 ha).[5] On August 7, the Governor mobilized the National Guard as part of "mobilizing every available resource to protect lives and property."[6] The fire had grown to 45,000 acres (18,000 ha), becoming the then-largest wildfire in Colorado. It remained at 0% contained as strong winds advanced the fire on several fronts, after making large runs on August 6, sometimes advancing about 1 mph (1.6 km/h). On the same day, "a large smoke cloud collapsed causing the fire to jump Colorado 13 and rapidly consume 100 acres before firefighting aircraft could get ahead of it."[6]
On 6–7 August, firefighters focused on slowing the advance to the north, and positioning to protect houses and structures, as the fire was threatening the town of Meeker.[6] By the 9th, more focus had been added to the south side of the fire to try to protect structures in that area as the fire had rapidly expanded southward.[7]
The active fire perimeter was 61,600 acres (24,900 ha) on August 8,[1] growing to 88,800 acres (35,900 ha) by August 9, still with 0% contained.[7][8]
By Sunday August 10, one week after the fire started, the fire perimeter had expanded to 106,700 acres (43,200 ha) with the interagency fire service stating that six percent containment had been achieved.[9] Fire area growth had slowed by August 11, with 113,000 acres, 7000 acres more than the day before, but less expansion than any of the five previous days. "The containment line for the Lee fire is on the northeastern corner of the fire, closest to Meeker," and is now 7% contained.[4]
Cause
[edit]The cause of the fire is believed to be due to lightning.[10]
Impact
[edit]Closures and evacuations
[edit]The city of Meeker, Colorado was placed on pre-evacuation notice on August 7, and Colorado State Highway 13 was closed for 50+ miles south of Meeker, closing one of only three routes out of town.[11][needs update]
See also
[edit]- Elk Fire - Another wildfire also burning near Meeker, Colorado
- 2025 United States wildfires
- 2025 Colorado wildfires
- List of Colorado wildfires
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Lee Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.wildfire.gov. August 8, 2025. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
- ^ Prentzel, Olivia (August 26, 2025). "Lee fire burns 138,844 acres in northwestern Colorado, now 4th largest fire in state history". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "Lee Fire becomes 4th-largest wildfire in Colorado history, surpassing Hayman Fire - CBS Colorado". www.cbsnews.com. August 26, 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ a b Krause, David. "Lee fire now 5th-largest in state history, burning more than 113k acres in northwestern Colorado". Colorado Sun. Retrieved August 11, 2025.
- ^ Wendland ·, Tegan (August 5, 2025). "Gov. Polis declares state of disaster for Western Slope wildfires, Lee and Grease fires merge overnight". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
- ^ a b c "National Guard called to help firefighters battling "really, really fast" wildfires in northwestern Colorado". Colorado Sun. August 7, 2025. Retrieved August 9, 2025.
- ^ a b Krause, David. "Lee fire west of Meeker is so large it is creating its own weather system". Colorado Sun. Retrieved August 9, 2025.
- ^ "Lee Fire". watchduty.org. Retrieved August 9, 2025.
- ^ Krause, David. "Lee fire tops 106k acres as firefighters in northwestern Colorado start to gain containment". Colorado Sun. Retrieved August 10, 2025.
- ^ Prentzel, Olivia (August 4, 2025). "Wildfire burning near Meeker destroys 3 buildings, explodes to 3,000 acres". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
- ^ "Rio Blanco fires remain zero percent contained Thursday morning; Evacuation shelters established in Craig and Rangely". Vail Daily. August 7, 2025. Retrieved August 9, 2025.
External links
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