Dozens of wildfires are raging in multiple states across the western United States, burning homes and National Forest lands and forcing the evacuations of entire towns.
Low humidity, dry vegetation and strong winds are driving the rapid growth of already established fires and sparking new blazes throughout the central West.
A set of red flag warnings — an alert indicating a combination of high temperatures, low humidity and strong winds — were issued through Tuesday evening across large swaths of Colorado and Utah, as well as portions of Arizona, New Mexico, Wyoming and Nebraska. Another set of red flag warnings are expected to go into effect in Colorado and Utah Wednesday. The conditions during a red flag warning can exacerbate ongoing fires.
In southern Colorado, the Aspen Acres Fire ignited Monday morning, and within hours had exploded to more than 23,000 acres, prompting evacuations of thousands of people across two counties. The fire has burned 28,000 acres and at least 155 structures as of Tuesday afternoon, officials said.
On Saturday, three firefighters were killed battling the Snyder Fire along the Utah-Colorado border. The crew was overtaken by a fast-moving blaze with no viable escape route or safety zone, the US Wildland Fire Service said. Two additional firefighters were injured during the same incident.
Dangerous fire weather conditions are expected to continue through the rest of the week, worsening near the week’s end, meaning there’s no end in sight for the beleaguered region.
Evacuations ordered as tens of thousands of acres burn in Colorado
Sixteen wildfires were burning across Colorado as of Monday night, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said, spurring several state emergency declarations across the state.
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One of those declarations was in Mesa County in response to the deadly Snyder Fire, which reached more than 30,000 acres Tuesday morning. Polis also authorized the state’s National Guard to support response efforts.
To the east, evacuations are in place for areas across Pueblo and Custer counties as the Aspen Acres Fire continues to be a threat. While weather conditions and firefighting efforts helped manage some of the fire growth Tuesday morning, high winds in the afternoon are a concern in the effort to keep it under control, Pueblo County Sheriff David Lucero said during a news conference.
Evacuations have also been ordered for areas around the Willow Fire in Lake County and the Gold Mountain Fire in Ouray County, and other fires have sprouted up around the state.
Many counties across Colorado instituted fire restrictions, including banning fireworks, ahead of the Fourth of July, but Polis also encouraged people “to exercise personal responsibility” with fireworks or other things that might start a fire.
“We owe it to the firefighters on the front lines to prevent new fires from starting,” he said during a news conference Monday.
Utah’s unprecedented fire conditions drive city-sized blaze
Last week in neighboring Utah, severe fire conditions drove the National Weather Service office in Salt Lake City to issue its first-ever “particularly dangerous situation” red flag warning for central and southern parts of the state.
Now, twelve fires encompassing nearly 300,000 acres are burning across across the state.
The Cottonwood Fire in southern Utah had grown to nearly 100,000 acres as of Tuesday night, an area bigger than Salt Lake City. It is only 5% contained, according to InciWeb data. Evacuations remain in place for the blaze, which officials say is likely the most destructive and expensive in state history.
An estimated 150 structures have been lost in the fire, Alyssa Mason, a Great Basin Team 5 spokesperson, told CNN. She said assessments are ongoing, and crews are expecting to find additional losses. Firefighters were able to make good progress in furthering the fire’s containment due to better weather conditions Tuesday, the US Forest Service – Fishlake National Forest said in an update.
The Wild Goose Fire ignited near Holden, Utah, on Friday, and has burned more than 10,000 acres and is 24% contained, according to Inciweb data.
Farther southeast, the Babylon Fire prompted the Manti-La Sal National Forest to issue an emergency closure Sunday. Part of Canyonlands National Park was also closed. As of Monday, over 48,000 acres were burned so far, the US Forest Service-Manti-La Sal National Forest said.