Soaring temperatures and tinder-dry conditions allowed the Alexander Mountain fire to race across 5,080 acres of national forest near Loveland on Tuesday as a new wildfire sparked just 8 miles south in Lyons, forcing further evacuations and possibly destroying two structures. The Stone Canyon fire was reported at 1:30 p.m. north of Lyons and grew to an estimated 450 acres by Tuesday night. Mandatory evacuation orders went out in less than an hour and quickly expanded into Larimer County, and shifting winds forced evacuations in the town of Lyons later Tuesday afternoon. A single-engine air tanker drops retardant on the Stone Canyon fire near Lyons on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.