RIO BLANCO COUNTY, Colo. – A five-acre wildfire that burned Sunday in Rio Blanco County was caused by a controlled trash burn, sheriff’s office deputies said in a news release.
Reports of a small fire burning on a hillside near mile marker 1.5 on Rio Blanco County Road 19 started coming in at around 3:30 p.m.
Routt County fire was called to help battle the blaze along with Meeker Fire, which reported the fire to be about five acres in size.
Containment of the blaze happened in about two hours, officials said Monday, adding that a controlled trash burn was the cause of the fire located about 20 miles northeast of Meeker.
The fire was considered controlled and contained at about 8 p.m.
Wind speeds in Meeker were reported to be around 33 mph with gusts up to 43 mph early in the afternoon, according to historical data from the National Weather Service.
The forecast calls for some lingering rain and snow showers over the northern mountains through Monday, but another storm system will begin to move in Tuesday, bringing gusty winds and some potential critical fire weather conditions to parts of southwestern Colorado. Snow and rain moves back in Tuesday evening and will persist through Wednesday but dry conditions move in for the rest of the week.