UPDATE: FRIDAY 7/3/2026 8:07 p.m.

(PUEBLO COUNTY/CUSTER COUNTY, Colo.) — An earlier pre-evacuation zone in northern Huerfano County has been upgraded to mandatory.

Residents in the area below should evacuate immediately. This is along the northern border of Huerfano County, just south of Rye.

Courtesy: Huerfano County Sheriff's Office

UPDATE: Explosive fire activity overnight for Aspen Acres

UPDATE: FRIDAY 7/3/2026 3:59 p.m.

According to first responders at a joint press conference on Friday, the Aspen Acres fire was extremely active overnight Thursday into Friday, prompting new mandatory evacuations in the early morning and exploding in size to over 60,000 acres Friday morning.

Jake Livingston, the Incident Commander with Alaska Team 1, said low humidity and high winds contributed to the explosive fire activity overnight. Those conditions are unfortunately expected to continue over the next 24-48 hours. Some moisture in the forecast may provide relief on Sunday, though fire crews are still stressing that the fire is very unpredictable.

Rich Smith, the Custer County Sheriff, announced that as of Friday afternoon, the fire was about 200 yards from Bishop Castle and crews were actively working to protect not only the castle but homes and property. Until weather conditions improve, fire crews will continue focusing on property protection.

Smith reiterated that an interactive map released earlier does not necessarily show whether your property is damaged. Just because a home is within the fire perimeter on the map, does not guarantee that it was damaged. Damage assessments have only been about 60% completed in the Beulah Valley, due to dangerous conditions keeping the assessments from being completed. Once conditions improve, which Smith was hopeful would be early next week, volunteer Search and Rescue personnel would be coming in to assist with damage assessments.

Approximately 11,000 people have been evacuated from Pueblo and Custer Counties, according to Smith. First responders continue to urge evacuees to visit the Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) at Pueblo City School District 60 at 29 Lehigh Avenue to get on first responders' radar to be notified/assisted should you suffer any losses.

The Custer County Sheriff's Office posted to social media that power will be cut from Makenzie Junction East throughout Wetmore as soon as possible.

Watch the full 3:30 p.m. press conference in the video player below. 

UPDATE: Pre-evacuation issued south of Florence

UPDATE: FRIDAY 7/3/2026 2:48 p.m.

A pre-evacuation notice has been issued for the area of Highway 67 south of Florence to the Custer County line, according to the Custer County Sheriff's Office (CCSO).

This pre-evacuation notice includes the towns of Rockvale and Coal Creek, as well as the Newlin Ridge and Locke Mountain subdivisions. Please prepare yourself for evacuation. The previously issued pre-evacuation notice for Hwy 67 at the 5.5 mile marker, 2-2.5 miles on each side, is still in place.

CCSO also updated the fire size to 74,265 acres.

Courtesy: Custer County Sheriff's Office

UPDATE: National Guard soldiers arrive Friday as Aspen Acres Fire grows to nearly 67,000 acres

UPDATE: FRIDAY 7/3/2026 11:54 a.m.

The Custer County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) is telling anyone in the Wetmore area to leave immediately, as the Aspen Acres Fire burning in Pueblo and Custer counties is very unpredictable.

UPDATE: FRIDAY 7/3/2026 10:18 a.m.

Jake Livingston, Incident Commander for the Alaska Complex Incident Management Team 1 (CIMT #1), said the Aspen Acres Fire burning in Pueblo and Custer counties exhibited extreme fire behavior overnight Thursday, July 2, and into Friday morning, July 3.

Courtesy: Alaska Complex Incident Management Team 1, map of Aspen Acres Fire, as of 8 a.m. on Friday, July 3.

The wildfire grew over 11,000 acres overnight, pushed by strong winds. According to Livingston, the fire grew to the following areas:

• The fire made an eight-mile run to the south, a four-to-five-mile run to the north, and grew one mile to the west.

• The southern movement reached Bondurant Road, made a run up Table Mountain, and is flanking to the southeast.

• The fire impacted Colorado City.

• Structure protection crews are working ahead of the fire to prepare home sites as the fire advances.

• Firefighters working along Siloam Road defended structures and used tactics to move the fire around structures as the fire crossed the road in the early morning hours.

National Guard soldiers are expected to arrive on Friday, according to Livingston. "A majority of the 50 guard members will replace sheriff deputies who have been staffing checkpoints on multiple roads that are closed in both Custer and Pueblo counties."

Drivers near the area are advised of smoky conditions. "Heads-up to Travelers: Visibility along I-25 in the vicinity of Mile Marker 74 was reported to be as low as one-half mile due to smoke from the Aspen Acres Fire (as of 10 a.m. Friday, July 3)."

On Friday, a Red Flag Warning is in effect from 8 a.m. to 12 a.m. There is also a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) in place above the fire area. "Flying any aircraft within the TFR is prohibited. This includes the use of drones, or unmanned aerial systems," according to the latest update.

ORIGINAL STORY: Aspen Acres Fire forces new evacuations, grows to nearly 67,000 acres

FRIDAY 7/3/2026 7:59 a.m.

The Aspen Acres Fire burning in Pueblo and Custer counties has forced new mandatory evacuations, according to the latest update on Friday, July 3. The fire has grown to 66,896 acres and remains at 0% containment.

On Friday at 6:30 p.m., the Alaska Complex Incident Management Team 1 will host a virtual, live update on the fire from the official Aspen Acres Fire 2026 Facebook page. The community will be able to submit questions in the chat during the presentation. FOX21 News will also provide a live stream of the update in the video player above once it begins.

Map of evacuation area

The Pueblo County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) shared an updated map of the evacuation areas for the Aspen Acres Fire around 12:30 a.m. on Friday. "Just because a property is shown inside of the fire perimeter, it does not necessarily mean that the property is affected," PCSO said.

Courtesy: PCSO, Current map of the evacuation areas for the Aspen Acres Fire as of Friday morning, July 3.

Mandatory evacuations for Aspen Acres Fire

PCSO listed the following mandatory evacuations at 12:30 a.m. on Friday:

• All of Colorado City, west of I-25 between Huerfano County and Burnt Mill Road, including west Hatchett Ranch, and Burnt Mill Road.

"The fire is approximately 20 miles from Pueblo," according to the sheriff's office. "There is no threat to Pueblo at this time."