Spring Fire at 100 percent containment

VALLEY – On Monday afternoon the Costilla County Office of Emergency Management tweeted that the Spring Fire was fully contained.

It had been listed as 93-95 percent contained for weeks.

The fire, which began on June 27 east of Fort Garland in Costilla County, burned 108,045 acres, ranking it the third largest fire in Colorado history.

More than 200 houses were lost in Costilla and Huerfano Counties, 148 in Costilla County according to Costilla County Assessor Ronda Lobato and 68 in Huerfano County according to public information officials. In addition, hundreds of people were evacuated on both sides of La Veta Pass.

Believed to have started the fire by cooking some meat over a fire pit, Jesper Joergensen, 51, from Denmark, is charged with 141 counts of felony arson and is scheduled for further court hearings on September 19 and 20.