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The Stoner Mesa Fire, burning in the San Juan National Forest northeast of Dolores, has spread to over 500 acres and is predicted to “be with us for a long time,” according to information provided by the Forest Service on Wednesday around 5:35 p.m.
The fire has forced mandatory evacuations including the Mavreeso Campground and Taylor Mesa and Stoner Mesa roads, and was reportedly caused by lightning. Evacuation status has not changed as of this time.
The fire’s behavior is reported as “extreme,” as it burns mixed conifer and “substantial dead and standing and down trees.”
“The Stoner Mesa Fire is going to be with us for a while,” Dolores District Ranger Nicholas Mustoe said. “The forest type and rugged terrain limit what tactics can be effective. We will take every available action to limit the footprint of the Stoner Mesa Fire when and where we can be successful.”
The Dolores Ranger District is reported to be “working closely” with the San Juan Type 3 Incident Management Team. They are working on developing a suppression plan for the blaze, and multiple teams of forest and fire management personnel flew in helicopters today to create a strategy for fighting the fire.
On Thursday, the San Juan Interagency Hotshot Crew will be on site to engage the fire near Taylor Mesa and begin assessing structures ahead of the fire, “out of an abundance of caution,” the Forest Service said.
“The Stoner Mesa Fire was lightning-caused and first reported on July 28 by Benchmark Lookout. During the next several days, helicopters dropped 7,000 gallons of water on the fire and inserted firefighters,” the Forest Service said. “The crew worked water into the fire until lightning forced them to return to their helicopter. Heavy dead and down trees, standing snags and frequent daily lightning posed significant risk to firefighters on the ground. With firefighter safety in mind, fire managers made the decision to utilize aircraft for patrol. The fire area received intermittent rain and no smoke was visible on the fire for four days until, on August 5, the fire experienced significant growth.”
Earlier on Wednesday, the San Juan Team 8, a local Type 3 Incident Management Team, was reassigned to the Stoner Mesa after wrapping up operations on the Elkhorn Fire, burning north of Durango.
The fire is about 20 miles northeast of Dolores and west of Rico. It is “exhibiting extreme fire behavior” as it moved east, according to a news release from the U.S. Forest Service.
The orders for mandatory evacuations include Forest Service Roads 686, 545 and all connecting roads and the Mavreeso, West Dolores and Burro Bridge campgrounds along the West Dolores River.
The Forest Service added that the Dolores and Montezuma sheriffs assisted with evacuation efforts, including helicopters ensuring that campers and others in the area for recreation were removed.
As of Tuesday at 8:19 p.m., it was reported that there were multiple airtankers, an air attack aerial supervision plane, two helicopters and firefighters on the scene.
“The fire is very remote and inaccessibility on foot or road due to heavy dead and down trees,” the Forest Service said. “As of Tuesday evening, the fire is still actively burning and demonstrating extreme fire behavior in mixed conifer and aspen forest.”
Updates on the fire can be found by visiting the Stoner Mesa Fire website at www.inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/cosjf-stoner-mesa-fire.
The Stoner Mesa Fire is one of three fires in Montezuma and Dolores counties. The Waters Canyon Fire, burning on the Ute Mountain Ute edge of Mesa Verde National Park, has burned about 200 acres. North of Cahone, the Sharp Canyon Fire has burned more than 400 acres, but officials expect to fully contain the fire’s footprint this weekend.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
