Colorado wildfires: 851 structures lost in Aspen Acres fire, blaze is 28% contained
DENVER - More than 850 structures have burned in the Aspen Acres fire southwest of Pueblo, officials said Friday morning, as the scope of the blaze starts to come into focus.
Colorado officials have also allowed some of the thousands of people displaced by four major wildfires to return home this week, with more evacuation orders lifted Friday as firefighters gradually gain containment.
Brad Washa, operations section chief on the Aspen Acres fire, said 851 structures have been confirmed burned by the fire, while noting the sheriff's office usually releases such information. A spokesperson for the Pueblo County Sheriff's Office did not immediately return a message seeking more information Friday morning.
On Friday afternoon, an expanded evacuation order was also issued for western Dolores County out of fears over the Ferris fire, according to the PBS warning system. Those new evacuation orders are for an area north of U.S. 491 and Dove Creek and west to the state line.
The Aspen Acres, Ferris, Gold Mountain and Willow fires have burned 196,596 acres, or 307 square miles, as of Friday morning. That is larger than New York City, about three-quarters of the size of Rocky Mountain National Park and nearly twice the size of the city of Denver.
Thunderstorms brought rain to several of the fires, but it wasn't enough to change conditions dramatically for fire crews. More hot, dry weather is expected this weekend.
"It's not a Hollywood movie that the rain comes and everyone's dancing around in fire camp," Washa said. "We're staying on the incident. We're not releasing any resources, and we have a lot of work left to do."
Aspen Acres fire in Custer and Pueblo counties
The Aspen Acres fire grew by nearly 1,000 acres Thursday night into Friday, but its estimated containment is now 28%, up from 20% the day before. The fire's total footprint is an estimated 97,083 acres, or nearly 152 square miles. Roughly 1,900 people are currently fighting the blaze.
The Pueblo County Sheriff's Office lifted the pre-evacuation status for the area west of Interstate 25, north of Cummings Street, east of South Crow Cutoff/Haynes Road, and south of Jerry Bass Lane. That area no longer has any evacuation restrictions or reentry card requirements.
Mandatory evacuation orders have been reduced to pre-evacuation in other parts of southern Pueblo County, the sheriff's office announced. Pre-evacuation means residents are allowed to return, but they need to be prepared to flee again if fire conditions change. Residents returning to pre-evacuation areas must have a re-entry card.
Fremont County officials lifted all remaining mandatory evacuations Thursday, although areas near the fire are still on pre-evacuation and residents should be ready to leave if fire behavior changes, county leaders said.
Pueblo Sheriff David Lucero, during a Friday afternoon news conference, confirmed 254 homes had been destroyed in the fire in his county. Four Pueblo County businesses also have been destroyed, along with 83 homes in Custer County, bringing the fire's toll to at least 341 structures.
It's not clear how many of the 851 structures officials announced were destroyed Friday morning were homes beyond the previously announced figures.
Two more Custer County homes had major damage, and five had minor damage, Sheriff Rich Smith said.
Pueblo County officials have assessed 67% of the damaged structures so far, Lucero said.
Although cooler temperatures and moisture from summer storms can help firefighters, they also threaten flash flooding over the burn area because water can't be absorbed by the charred soil, Aspen Acres incident commander Jake Livingston said. National Weather Service forecasters issued a flash flood watch for the area around the fire on Wednesday.
"Those thunderstorms, that's not going to be enough moisture," Aspen Acres Fire Section Chief Brad Washa said in a Friday morning briefing. "That flash of moisture doesn't really penetrate into the fuels; it doesn't penetrate through the canopy. We need a multiple-day-type event to really have that precipitation have an impact on the fire."
The fire's footprint is approaching the size of Denver, which is a little more than 153 square miles, and remains the seventh-largest in Colorado history, according to the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control.
Mandatory evacuations remained in effect on Friday for Pueblo and Custer counties, including Rye and Beulah and from South Crow Cutoff and Haynes Road to the Wet Mountains, according to the evacuation map, and for the area between National Forest lands and the intersection of county roads 660 and 670 near Apache City west of I-25 in Huerfano County.
Updated evacuation information for Pueblo, Custer and Huerfano counties and for Fremont County can be found online.
Evacuated residents can seek shelter at the Pueblo County Recreation Center, 1650 Cooper Place; the Wetmore Community Center, 95 County Road 393; or at Pathfinder Park in Florence, 6655 Colorado 115.
The exact origin of the fire remains under investigation, but officials believe it was human-caused.
Gold Mountain fire near Ouray
To the north, Ouray County officials also lifted mandatory evacuations for some homes near the Gold Mountain fire, and people living along the U.S. 550 corridor were allowed to return home Wednesday.
The Gold Mountain grew about 1,000 acres, or 1.5 square miles, from Thursday into Friday. The fire's footprint is now 33,185 acres, or 52 square miles, with 7% containment. The estimated containment dropped slightly, which can happen when a fire's acreage increases.
As of Wednesday, 984 personnel were on scene to fight the wildfire, according to Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 3, which is leading the fire response.
Higher humidity, increased cloud cover and light rain showers helped limit the wildfire's spread on Tuesday, according to a Wednesday morning update from fire officials. Flames continued to burn within the perimeter, but firefighters reported minimal growth, the update stated.
Mandatory evacuations remained in place Thursday north of the fire, according to Ouray County's evacuation map.
The evacuation zone is bordered to the west by Ouray County Road 8 and Ouray County Road 10, to the north by Tommy Creek, to the east by Lou Creek Pass and to the south by Baldy Peak and the wildfire. Evacuations were also ordered northeast of the Cimarron Ridge, along the border of Gunnison and Montrose counties, according to the map.
Mandatory evacuations were lifted for an area west of the wildfire that includes Lake Lenore and is bordered to the west by U.S. 550, to the north by Cutler Creek, to the east by the wildfire burn area and to the south by Bridalveil Creek. That area is now on pre-evacuation status.
Evacuated residents can seek shelter at the Ridgway Secondary School, 1200 Green St., according to county officials.
Ferris fire in San Juan National Forest, near Dolores
On Friday afternoon, officials issued evacuation orders for western Dolores County near the town of Dove Creek and north of U.S. 491. The evacuation areas are: Dolores County Road E and U.S. 491 east to the canyon rim; and Dolores County Road H.6 north to County Road E and County Road 8.7 east to the canyon rim.
On the Western Slope, crews fighting the Ferris fire near Dolores faced "active" and "intense" fire conditions Wednesday, officials said Thursday. The Ferris fire burned an additional 8 square miles and has consumed 62,916 acres, or 98 square miles. It is 19% contained.
The fire was most active along the western portion and reached the Bradfield Bridge Campground but has not damaged any structures, fire officials said.
Light showers and cloud cover also helped firefighters on the Gold Mountain and Willow fires, but crews on the Ferris fire to the south were not as lucky, officials said Wednesday.
"Extreme fire behavior" on Tuesday afternoon continued overnight into Wednesday, forcing middle-of-the-night evacuations south of the fire as flames burned over the canyon rim.
"Yesterday's intense fire activity produced rapid uphill runs, torching and crown fire through the Glade Canyon and Big Spring Gulch drainages," officials said in a Wednesday update.
The growth forced new evacuations from Dolores County Road H.6 south to County Road P, from County Road 12 east to County Road 15 and along U.S. 491 south of County Road M, according to the Dolores County Office of Emergency Management.
As of Thursday evening, the Ferris fire had consumed an estimated 62,916 acres, or 98 square miles, in and near the San Juan National Forest north of Dolores. At that time, the blaze was 19% contained, fire officials said.
Lightning sparked three fires in the San Juan National Forest on June 27. Those fires then grew and merged into the Ferris fire. San Juan Incident Management Team 8 is leading the fire response.
Willow fire near Leadville
Lake County officials lifted some pre-evacuation warnings Thursday as containment on the Willow fire grew to 22%, up from 16% on Wednesday. Flames have consumed about 4,500, or 7 square miles, of forest near Turquoise Lake and Leadville.
In an update Friday morning, Lake County Heath Speckman said there had been little update overnight. He reminded residents that fire restrictions - including a ban on shooting - remained in effect in the county and surrounding U.S. Forest Service land.
Mandatory evacuations remained in place on Friday for an area bordered to the north by Lonesome Lake and Isolation Lakes, to the west by Twining Peak, to the south by Echo Creek and to the east by East Tennessee Creek.
Air quality alerts
The four fires have led to consistently worsening air quality across the state, prompting state health officials to issue advisories. The official warnings mostly cover central, west and southwest Colorado.
The newest alert from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment will remain in effect until at least 9 a.m. Saturday, according to the agency. That alert includes Montrose, Ouray, San Miguel, Dolores, San Juan, Hinsdale, Pueblo and Custer Counties.
If the smoke drops visibility to less than 5 miles in an area, it has reached unhealthy levels, state health officials said in the alert. Those with heart disease and respiratory illnesses, young children and older adults are more at risk.
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This story was originally published July 10, 2026 at 9:16 PM.