DOLORES – Crews fighting the Stoner Mesa Fire northeast of Dolores reported significant progress in strengthening containment lines, officials said Friday morning, as weather conditions began to favor firefighters.
The blaze, which has scorched 7,390 acres since it was ignited by lightning July 28, is 0% contained, according to the Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 1. It is burning roughly 20 miles northeast of Dolores.
The National Weather Service called for a 50% chance of thunderstorms Friday afternoon, with winds gusting to 25 to 35 mph, temperatures falling to 73 degrees and humidity climbing to more than 35%.
However, rain was not expected to significantly impact fire behavior. The management team, led by Incident Commander Justin Conrad, warned that heavy dead fuels will continue to burn and that wind could lead to increased fire activity.
The Colorado Department of Health issued an advisory Friday morning warning that air quality was hazardous in northern Montezuma County and eastern Dolores County.
During a briefing Friday morning, Operations Section Chief Matt Weakland emphasized the team’s overall strategy.
“Everything we’re doing out here on the fire ground is to protect the values that we have in the County Road 38 and the (Colorado Highway 145 corridor,” he said, noting that structures were dispersed near Dunton Hot Springs and along the highway.
Weakland also cited the efforts of the Division A crews, which helped to “create a very good control feature” on top of Stoner Mesa.
On Thursday, crews focused on multiple divisions of the fire. In Division A, the northwest corner of the fire, crews strengthened containment lines, though several unburned spots remained near the fire’s edge on Stoner Mesa. Planned burn operations might be used to eliminate the spots if weather permits.
Two new divisions – X on the west and W on the southwest – are being assessed for containment strategies on both sides of Stoner. Fire managers are exploring trail systems and roads to prevent further spread.
On the southeastern perimeter, Division T crews were securing a bulldozer line between Roads 545 and 547 and might conduct burns to reduce risk from unburned islands within the fire’s perimeter.
Fire managers have been scouting Division E, on the steep and inaccessible eastern flank near Dunton, for possible containment efforts using natural barriers and existing roads and trails.
Weakland emphasized the challenges crews faced in the far northeastern corner of the fire.
"It’s a really inaccessible area and it’s a challenging place because of the timber stand that’s in there and a lot of dead trees and other hazards on top of very, very steep slopes,” he said. “So we do have a lot of effort going into scouting and really working on developing a solid plan for what we’re going to do with that area.”
Structure protection teams also remain active. Group 145 is working north of Stoner to clear vegetation around properties, while Group 38 is conducting assessments along County Road 38 from Dunton.
“We’ve definitely ramped up our numbers over the last several days and most notably we’ve put a lot of that on Highway 145,” Weakland said. “There’s been a lot of prep work that’s gone into place utilizing weed eaters and some other tools to remove grass around power poles and structures in the Stoner area.”
More information
Information phone: 970-341-8668 (new number)
Email: 2025.stonermesa@firenet.gov
InciWeb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/cosjf-stoner-mesa-fire
Facebook: https://facebook.com/StonerMesaFire/
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@StonerMesaFire
LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/StonerMesaFirePIO
Evacuation alerts are being managed by the Dolores County Sheriff’s Department. Residents can sign up for emergency notifications through county websites. The San Juan National Forest has issued emergency closures in affected areas, and Stage 2 fire restrictions remain in place across the region.
Authorities remind the public that wildfires are a no-fly zone for unauthorized aircraft, including drones. “If you fly, we can’t,” officials said.
More than 450 personnel are currently assigned to the fire, with additional resources arriving. For updates, residents can visit the fire’s InciWeb page or follow the Stoner Mesa Fire on Facebook.
