As Colorado’s Alexander Mountain wildfire in Larimer county continues to spread, it stands as a stark reminder of how destructive wildfires can be, how fast they can spread and bad memories of some recent ones.

Despite its rapid growth in 30 hours, the Alexander Mountain wildfire, which began just west of Loveland on Monday just before noon, isn’t wreaking havoc to buildings or, so far as reported, no lives. Roughly 3,200 people — voluntary or not — have evacuated the area. 

At more than 5,000 acres in size already, and 0% containment, the fire could be on its way to becoming another large Colorado wildfire.

Let’s take a look at Colorado’s larges wildfires in recent memory:

Marshall

Extreme cold December winds in 2021 resulted in the most costly wildfire in Colorado history.

On the morning of Dec. 30, 2021, authorities evacuated around 35,000 people from the towns of Superior, Louisville, and other parts of Boulder County.

Undisputedly, the Marshall fire in Boulder County, which damaged and destroyed 1,169 homes and businesses in 2022, is one of the most devastating in Colorado’s history.

The wildfire scorched 6,080 acres of land, resulting in damage costs exceeding $2 billion.

County officials determined the cause of the fire to be, according to a Marshall Fire Investigative summary released by Boulder County Sheriff’s and district attorney last year, due to downed and sparking Xcel Energy transmission lines. The company, facing numerous lawsuits, vehemently denies the results of the investigation and has admitted no liability.

Officials called it “the single most destructive event in Boulder County’s history,” according to the summary.

Waldo Canyon

During a hot and dry spell in the summer of 2012, a wildfire that began as a forest fire spread into Waldo Canyon, northwest of Colorado Springs.

The fire claimed two lives.

It lasted nearly three weeks and spanned 18,247 acres destroyed 346 houses. The fire began on June 22 of that year, and lasted until July 10. Over 32,000 people were evacuated and insurance claims totaled more than $450 million.

The Waldo Canyon Fire was determined to be human-caused.

Black Forest

One year after the Waldo Canyon fire, another fire spread in the middle of June 2013 in a highly populated woodland area northeast of Colorado Springs.

The Black Forest fire is deemed as one of the most destructive fires in state history, considering its proximity city neighborhoods.

It caused two fatalities, destroyed 486 houses and $300 million in damage. Investigations concluded the fire was human caused, but further details remain unclear.

During the recovery period, the El Paso County Sheriff’s and the Black Forest Fire district argued over the cause and handling of the fire. Black Forest residents eventually filed a $60 million civil lawsuit against the fire district, county, and state, claiming the entire situation had been mishandled.

Cameron Peak

By size, the Cameron Peak wildfire is the largest on record in Colorado history.

On Aug. 13, 2020 — in the midst of a global pandemic caused by COVID-19 — the fire blazed for roughly four months.

It burned more than 208,000 acres of Colorado’s northwestern mountains. The fire started near Chambers Laker, 30 miles out of Walden, and burned through the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests in Larimer and Jackson Counties.

Roughly 6,000 people were evacuated from nearby cities, including from Estes Park, and destroyed 461 structures.

It remains unclear what caused of Cameron Peak’s wildfire, but some speculate it was human-caused.

The National Weather Service categorized the most destructive wildfires in Colorado history by size, structural damage and fatalities.

Fire size in acres:

• Cameron Peak (2020): 208,913
• East Troublesome (2020): 193,812
• Pine Gulch (2020): 139,007
• Hayman (2002): 137,007
• West Fork Complex (2013): 110,405

Structures destroyed:

•  Marshall (2021): 1,084
•  Hayman (2002): 600
•  East Troublesome (2020): 580
•  Black Forest (2013): 511 
•  Cameron Peak (2020): 461

Fatalities:

• South Canyon (1994): 14
• Cheyenne Mountain (1950): 9
• Hayman (2002): 5
• Battlement Creek (1976): 4
• Big Elk (2002): 3

Check the Denver Gazette’s live blog for updates from the ongoing Alexander Mountain wildfire.