Significant growth occurred on Wednesday on the Elk and Lee Fires near Meeker, Colorado. The Wednesday morning report listed the Elk Fire at 8,304 acres and the Lee Fire at 22,497 acres with 0% containment. The resources (which included 7 aircraft, 9 engines, 7 hand crews, and 3 heavy equipment) focused on structure protection and reducing forward progress of the fires but acreage was expected to increase due to the windy and dry conditions. On Wednesday evening, a community meeting was held by the Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team that reported that the Lee Fire had doubled, growing to 45,000 acres that day and the Elk Fire had grown to 14,250 acres. The Sheriff’s Office shared on Wednesday that the fire had crossed Highway 13 and that “the fire looks scary from [Meeker], however, there are natural barriers between the fire and town which includes irrigated fields. Where the fire is moving has heavier fuels which will look more volatile than what you have seen in town.” Evacuation zones expanded throughout the day. Updates and the digital evacuation map can be linked to through the Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.
