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Aspen Acres blaze crosses 100K-acre threshold; crews gain containment

The seventh-largest wildfire in Colorado history crossed the 100,000-acre threshold over the weekend, but firefighters battling the Aspen Acres blaze have also made large strides in containment.

As of Sunday morning, the wildland fire was 100,224 acres with 61% containment, according to Northern Rockies Complex Incident Management Team 6.

With most of the containment on the east side of the fire, crews are stepping up firefighting efforts on the west side, with additional interagency hotshot and hand crews coming in to assist, officials said.

Fire aftermath
A burned home is shown along a devastated street near Pine Drive in Beulah after the Aspen Acres fire on Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (Jerilee Bennett, The Gazette)

More phased re-entries are planned for the coming week as evacuation orders are lifted in Pueblo and Custer counties, but many residents of the Rye area are still waiting to return to their homes.

Several areas of high heat and increased fire behavior are still too close to the town to risk lifting the evacuation, according to Northern Rockies Operations Section Chief Ben Wagner.

“We want to get you home,” Wagner said in an operations briefing on Saturday. “We’re working hard to be able to do that, to get you home. We just want to make sure that we don’t do it prematurely.”

Here’s an update on other wildfires burning in Colorado:

Willow fire

Location: Lake County, west of Leadville

Last official update: 8:30 a.m. Sunday

Size: 7,103 acres

Containment: 37%

Cause: Human

About 690 personnel are fighting the Willow fire, which was first reported on June 28. On Sunday, wildfire analysts were concerned about dry weather conditions, which could contribute to increased fire activity. No structures had been lost as of Sunday.

Gold Mountain fire

Location: About 2 miles northeast of the town of Ouray

Last official update: 9 a.m. Sunday

Size: 37,809 acres

Containment: 13%

Cause: Undetermined

An unauthorized drone flew into the area on Saturday, causing crews to suspend critical air support, according to Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 2.

“When this occurs, all official aircraft must cease operations,” officials stated in Sunday’s operational update. “If you fly, we can’t.”

Crews “exceeded expectations” along parts of the fire perimeter on Saturday, establishing containment lines ahead of schedule.

Team meteorologists said upcoming “monsoonal weather patterns” are expected to gradually stem growth of the Gold Mountain wildfire.

Ferris fire

Location: Glade area north of the town of Dolores

Last official update: 9 a.m. Sunday

Size: 64,881 acres

Containment: 83%

Cause: Undetermined

Aided by favorable weather conditions, including significant rainfall and high relative humidity, firefighters have been able to make encouraging strides on the Ferris blaze, gaining 83% containment.

As the fire begins to wind down, California Interagency Incident Management Team 7 will turn over command to San Juan Team 8 effective Monday.

“We leave knowing the fire is in a strong position and are confident the incoming team will continue the outstanding work already underway,” the California team said in a farewell message.



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