Colorado wildfires: State’s fifth-largest wildfire on record now 90% contained

DENVER — Colorado’s fifth-largest wildfire on record is 90% contained as rain showers and thunderstorms continue across the Western Slope, fire officials said.

As of Monday morning, the Lee Fire had consumed 137,758 acres, equal to roughly 215 square miles. The burn area was just two acres short of Colorado’s fourth-largest wildfire on record — the 137,760-acre Hayman Fire that sparked in 2002.

Other wildfires burning on Colorado’s Western Slope have scorched thousands of additional acres. Fire officials across the state have said hot, dry and windy conditions fueled the flames’ rapid growth.

Storms over the next several days will bring much-needed rain to the drought-stricken Western Slope, according to the National Weather Service. But those storms also increase the risk of lightning