Helicopters fill up water at Green Ridge Glade Reservoir to drop on the Alexander Mountain fire burning west of Loveland on Monday, July 29, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
A series of wildfires burning along the Front Range foothills killed one person, damaged or destroyed at least 30 buildings, caused the governor to activate the Colorado National Guard and cloaked the sweltering Denver metro in a heavy cloud of smoke.
Four fires, all sparked along the Front Range since Monday have burned across more than 10,000 acres as of Thursday evening and prompted the evacuation of thousands of people.
Fire crews in Boulder County extinguished the small, multi-acre Lake Shore fire on Thursday, but another wildfire sparked in western Colorado — near Nucla — just hours later.
All four major fires currently burning — the Quarry fire in Jefferson County, the Alexander Mountain fire in Larimer County, the Stone Canyon fire in Boulder and Larimer counties and the Bucktail fire in Montrose County — began this week and grew rapidly, fueled by hot, dry weather and arid conditions on the ground.
Wranglers from Sylvan Dale Ranch round up some of their 80+ horses to put them on trailers to take them to safety away from the Alexander Mountain fire burning west of Loveland on Monday, July 29, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)Andrea Maxwell, right, with the Larimer County Sheriff’s posse, and Kayley McMurry, with the NOCO Animal Protection services talk on the radio as they head to their vehicles while keeping watchful eyes the Alexander Mountain fire burning west of Loveland on Monday, July 29, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)Two helicopter fly into position to dump water on the Alexander Mountain fire west of Loveland on Monday, July 29, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Evacuees Deborah Mann, left, and her son, Basil Mann, 6, on his small ATV, try to stay cool eating popsicles at the home of Mann’s parents while the Alexander Mountain fire continues to burn in the foothills west of their home off of Glade Road near Loveland on July 30, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)Flames can be seen as a helicopter passes over the Alexander Mountain fire near homes west of Loveland on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Evacuee Lizzy Mann, 8, eats a popsicle while watching the Alexander Mountain fire from her grandparents’ house off of Glade Road west of Loveland on July 30, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)Evan Mann puts essentials into the car as he and his wife, Deborah, pack up their house as they evacuate from the Alexander Mountain fire west of Loveland on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. Their house off of County Road 27 was roughly a mile from the closest portion of the fire. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Deborah Mann writes a note to firefighters as she and her husband, Evan, pack up their house as they evacuate from the Alexander Mountain fire west of Loveland on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)A single engine air tanker drops retardant on the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)Smoke rises from the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)David Glover, left, and his wife Taylor pack for evacuation in Lyons on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)A CH-47D Chinook helicopter ripples the water with its rotor blades, creating a rainbow as it reloads with water at Green Ridge Glade Reservoir, while another helicopter passes in the background to help fight the Alexander Mountain fire west of Loveland on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Firefighters battle the orange blaze of the Alexander Mountain fire west of Loveland on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Firefighters work on fighting the Alexander Mountain fire that continues to burn near Sylvan Dale Ranch west of Loveland on July 30, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)A tattered American flag blows in the wind along Glade Road west of Loveland on July 30, 2024. The Alexander Mountain Fire continues to burn in the background consuming over 5000 acres as of Tuesday night. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)Firefighters work on fighting the Alexander Mountain fire near Sylvan Dale Ranch that continues to burn west of Loveland on July 30, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)In Jefferson County the Quarry fire burns near Deer Creek Canyon forcing evacuations early in the morning on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Eric Lutzens/The Denver Post)Bystanders watch the Quarry fire near the South Valley Park in Ken Caryl on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post)As beachgoers float in the water, an air tanker skims the waters of Chatfield Reservoir while refilling for the aerial fight against the Quarry fire in Jefferson County just west of Chatfield Reservoir on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Eric Lutzens/The Denver Post)Stratmoor Hills Fire Protection engine boss John Ortiz, watches as helicopters pass by to drop water on the Alexander Mountain fire near Loveland on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. The engine was providing structure protection on the fire. At right is Hygiene Fire Protection District firefighter Jen Sampson. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)Firefighters douse flames with water near a home being threatened by the Stone Canyon fire as a helicopter flies overhead preparing to dump water on the fire near Lyons on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Firefighters try to quell flames near a home being threatened by the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)A home off of Stone Canyon Road appears almost entirely burned down from the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Boulder County sheriff’s Sgt. Cody Sears radios to incident command about evacuees while two horses stand on the side of their pasture furthest from the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Boulder County sheriff’s Sgt. Cody Sears talks to Carmen Roberts about her decision to remain in her home and not evacuate despite the nearby Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)A CL 415 Scooper, top, drops water on the Quarry fire as a Firehawk helicopter maneuvers for a water drop in Jefferson County on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post)Jefferson County officials block a road in Ken Caryl as the Quarry fire burns near Littleton on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)People watch while crews work in Ken Caryl as the Quarry fire burns near Littleton on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)Firefighter Jack Pemberton refills a firetruck before returning back up Stone Canyon Road to continue fighting the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)A police car, bottom left, drives through a desolate black landscape burned by the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)A view from a ridge near Lyons Middle Senior High School shows how close the Stone Canyon fire got to nearby neighborhoods in Lyons, as seen on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Genevieve Newell brings items into the garage after an evacuation order was lifted for their home in Lyons on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. Their home was a quarter mile away from where the fire was suppressed off of Stone Canyon Road, seen in the background. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)Kate Newell embraces her son Adam after an evacuation order was lifted for their home in Lyons on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. Their home was a quarter mile away from where the fire was suppressed off of Stone Canyon Road. (Photo by Zachary Spindler-Krage/The Denver Post)
