PUEBLO — The Aspen Acres fire, a human-caused wildfire near Colorado City, Colorado, has burned more than 93,600 acres and destroyed approximately 260 homes. As of July 8, 2026, the fire remains 15% contained, and thousands of residents from several communities have evacuated.

The fire was first reported on June 29, 2026. Authorities confirmed the fire was human-caused, and details regarding its origin are under investigation. No deaths have been reported from the Aspen Acres fire.

Jim Pitts, an agency administrator at the U.S. Forest Service, stated that the fire would last all summer. He noted that the fire is burning through steep slopes, which can complicate firefighting efforts and aid the rapid spread of flames. "This thing is absolutely doing what it wants to do," Pitts said. "Right now, our focus is: How do we support our communities? How do we support our neighbors?"

Paul Schlatter, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boulder, commented on the fire's conditions. "Any amount of wind, in this environment, will keep that fire going," Schlatter said. He also stated that Colorado should see monsoonal moisture within a week or so of July 8, 2026. Schlatter noted that "We know with the way climate change impacts local weather conditions that droughts and heat waves are going to be longer-lived, more extreme."

An incident management team from Alaska is leading the firefight efforts for the Aspen Acres fire, with personnel from across the United States participating. The Pueblo Community Animal Response Team has sheltered more than 1,300 evacuated animals, including cattle, at a fairground. Colorado State University leads this effort, and around 1,000 volunteers have offered to help. Mental health professionals are available to connect ranchers to resources.

Across the United States, firefighters are battling 36 large uncontained fires. So far in 2026, fires have burned more than 3.3 million acres, compared to about 2.1 million acres by the same time in 2025. In late June 2026, three wildland firefighters died while responding to a blaze in western Colorado. A community meeting regarding the Aspen Acres fire was held at a Pueblo high school on July 6, 2026, where Brad Washa, the operations section chief for the Alaska Complex Incident Management Team, explained the state of the fire to evacuees.