“If this note finds you we must have done something right.”

That was the first sentence of a note attached to Dan Stones’ cabin near Lake Granby. The note was left by Meeker Fire Engine 1446, who had just saved the cabin from the East Troublesome fire.

The note apologizes for not being able to save the owner’s shed and for cutting part of the house’s wood fence. “Things got really hot we stayed as long as possible,” it said.

The note was discovered by a contractor Sunday afternoon who was brought in by the Sheriff’s Office to shut off water and clear out pipes before the winter storm hit.

Stones said he read the note over 100 times that day.

“We just burst into tears when he read that note,” Stones said. “If the whole world came together and said ‘thank you,’ it wouldn’t be enough.”

Stones’ cabin was within the burn line, but it was not destroyed like the other around it.

“These people are saving our world,” Stones said. “And there’s nothing I could ever do to repay that.”

When the wildfire reached Grand Lake, firefighters worked for days to protect Grand Lake proper. They kept the fire from spreading into Estas Park before the storm hit Sunday.

The East Troublesome fire has destroyed between 300 and 400 houses, officials said Sunday.

The wildfire is the second-largest in Colorado’s history, having burned 192,560 acres. The fire is currently at 15% containment.