July 9th 2026
Fire crews hoping for quieter fire activity on the Aspen Acres Fire today.
The Aspen Acres Fire now stands at 96,031 acres burned with 16% containment as of last
night. Today there are 1,677 personnel working on the fire. Yesterday firefighters made
progress on the northwest and eastern sides of the fire toward Rye and Colorado City.
Firefighters have had limited access to the western side due to the steeper terrain and
limited access in the area. Slow progress has been made on the Lake Isabel side due to
the terrain. Pueblo County officials say most of the homes impacted by the fire are in
Beulah, with 192 homes and four commercial structures lost in the county. However,
Pueblo County has only assessed 67% of the affected homes, so that number is expected
to grow. In Custer County, 83 total homes were destroyed in the fire. The Fremont
County Sheriff yesterday said that the towns of Rockvale, Coal Creek and Williamsburg
have been downgraded to pre-evacuation status. The area north of the Fremont County
line is still under mandatory evacuation, however, and is still threatened by the fire. Fire
officials say that, in the next 48 to 72 hours, more evacuations are expected to be lifted,
but could change depending on fire conditions. Fire crews are hoping for quieter fire
activity today due to the precipitation received over the fire area last night. While the fire
has not received enough rain to put the fire out, the rain, humidity and cooler
temperatures are enough to give crews a break from the recent high fire activity.
New wildfire spotted in Huerfano County yesterday.
What's being called the "Pole Canyon Fire" was spotted yesterday morning around
9:30am in the area southeast of greenhorn mountain in Huerfano County. Firefighters
responded to the area to investigate smoke and have been working to contain the fire. As
of yesterday afternoon, the fire had burned a little less than 2 acres. No structures are
threatened. Air support has been assisting with water drops as crews work to contain the
fire. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
Much Police activity took place in Walsenburg yesterday afternoon.
Much police activity took place in Walsenburg yesterday afternoon with police
surrounding the laundromat at the corner of 6th and Hendren, as well as police detaining a
man across the street from 7-Eleven. Most of the activity, however, was centered around
Seventh Street just west of City Park with police cordoning off much of the block
between Olive Street and Ash Avenue. A sheet-draped body could be seen on the
sidewalk in front of 811 west 7th. Police would only comment that officers were securing
the scene while they waited for the arrival of an outside investigative agency.
Missing prospector found safe in Mineral County Tuesday.
Marvin Lord, a missing prospector who vanished during what was supposed to be a short
hike in Mineral County was found safe Tuesday after wandering the rugged Colorado
wilderness for over two days. Lord was reported missing on Sunday at 11:30pm while
prospecting near Fox Mountain Road, also known as Forest Service Road 381. A multi
agency search effort began on Monday. A breakthrough came Tuesday Afternoon when
two women reported they had seen a man walking near Tucker Ponds on Pass Creek
Road. Lord was found uninjured and has been reunited with his family.
Town of La Veta announces Stage 4 Water Restrictions.
The Town of La Veta has announced that they have implemented Stage 4 Water
Restrictions due to a critical shortage of water. With stage 4 water restrictions, the
following is prohibited: no outdoor watering, no washing of vehicles, and no filling of
swimming pools, hot tubs or fountains. The town says the restrictions are mandatory and
will be enforced for all businesses and community members. For more information, call
The La Veta Town Hall at 719-742-3631.
July 8th 2026
Aspen Acres Fire growth slows significantly.
Growth on the Aspen Acres Fire has slowed significantly with the fire only increasing by
less than 300 acres yesterday. As of last night, fire officials say that the fire has burned
93,916 acres and is now 16% contained. The Custer County Sheriff's Office says that 81
homes have been destroyed in Custer County. Additionally, two homes have major
damage, five have minor damage and one was "affected" in Custer County. Pueblo
County says that 185 homes have been lost, for a total of 266 homes lost to the fire.
Custer County officials say if you are an evacuee and have not received an evacuation
card, you are asked to visit The Custer County School's west gym to get a card. You will
need the card to get back into the evacuated area. Pueblo County residents who were
evacuated should get an evacuation re-entry card from the disaster assistance center at the
Pueblo Academy of the Arts in Pueblo. State officials say that people who get their water
from the pine drive water district or signal mountain ranch property owners water
company should not use their tap water for anything except showering or watering. Use
bottled water for anything else, including drinking, cooking and brushing teeth. The state
also says that returning evacuees who have private wells should use bottled water right
now due to possible well contamination and damage. No changes in evacuation or pre-
evacuation status were made yesterday.
Alamosa man plead guilty in 2024 case Monday.
Larry Chavez, 35, of Alamosa, plead guilty to second degree assault and felony
manslaughter on Monday in connection with the 2024 death of Enrique Parra, 44, of
Alamosa. Chavez was sentenced to 24 years, with an additional 11 years for being a
habitual criminal, making the total sentence 35 years in the department of corrections. As
a habitual criminal, Chavez will not be eligible for parole until he's served 85% of his
sentence, or a little less than 30 years. Chavez reportedly had an argument with Parra on
August 1st of 2024, ending in Chavez shooting Parra. Parra was taken to the hospital
where he was declared deceased. Chavez was arrested in Santa Fe, New Mexico the
following day.
Trailer fire closed one lane of I-25 in Pueblo yesterday.
A trailer fire yesterday closed one northbound lane on Interstate 25 in Pueblo. According
to The Colorado Department of Transportation, the right lane was closed due to the fire
around 10:30am in the southbound lanes of the interstate between 29th street and 13th
street. Pueblo firefighters said that the trailer fire would require extensive cleanup before
the lane could be reopened. The Southbound right lane did reopen around 11:30am.
Alamosa man arrested in 4th of July shooting case.
Cletus Rinebarger, 68, of Alamosa, was arrested for his alleged involvement in a shooting
that took place on Saturday, July 4th. According to The Alamosa County Sheriff's Office,
deputies responded to the 5400 Block of Stanley Road on Saturday around 10:15am on
the report of a shooting. Upon arrival, deputies located an adult male suffering from an
apparent gunshot wound. The victim was transferred to a front range hospital for medical
care. Rinebarger is being held on attempted first degree murder and first degree assault.
Investigators believe this is an isolated incident and there is no known threat to the public
at this time.
Big Sheep Fire in Huerfano County officially 100% contained.
The Big Sheep Fire that was originally reported on Monday, June 29th, on the moonshine
ranch near big sheep mountain, is now 100% contained. The fire burned approximately
1,322 acres. The state incident management team returned control of the fire to The
Huerfano County Government on Monday around 6am.
July 7th 2026
Some evacuations lifted last night in Aspen Acres Fire.
The Aspen Acres Fire has burned 91,523 acres and is now 13 percent contained. A total
of 1,374 fire personnel are currently working on the fire. Officials say so far 263 homes
have been lost in the fire. Of that number, 185 homes and four commercial businesses
have been lost in Pueblo County. 78 homes have experienced at least some level of
damage by the fire in Custer County. Last night The Pueblo County Sheriff lifted some
evacuations and have changed to pre-evacuation status for those living west of Interstate
25, North of Cummings Street, east of South Crow Cutoff, East of Haynes Road and
South of Jerry Bass Lane. Those in the area must bring their photo id and re-entry card to
re-enter the pre-evacuation area. To get a re-entry card, visit the disaster assistance
center at The Pueblo Academy of Arts on Lehigh avenue in Pueblo and bring proof of
residency any time today. Residents should still be ready to leave again if conditions
worsen. All other areas still remain under mandatory evacuations at this time. The
Pueblo County Sheriff has also announced a mandatory curfew for those in the impacted
areas of the fire from 9pm to 7am. The sheriff says that no traffic will be allowed
through traffic control points during that time.
CO AG Weiser announces funding granted to CO organizations.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser Announced yesterday that $12 million in funding
has been granted to 27 organizations across Colorado,with the goal of investing opioid
settlement funds into programs preventing substance abuse. The impacted organizations
work to expand youth treatment and recovery, improve re-entry support for people
leaving prison, strengthen Colorado's rural and under served behavioral health and peer
workforce, and support families across the state. The grants are the fourth funding
opportunity supported through Colorado's share, which represents 10% of Colorado's
opioid settlement funds.
One vehicle crash closes North I-25 south of Pueblo yesterday.
The northbound lanes of Interstate 25 were closed yesterday morning following a one
vehicle crash. According to the Pueblo Police Department, the one vehicle crash took
place just after 9am yesterday morning and caused power lines to fall down onto the
lanes of the interstate, forcing the closure, and pushing traffic to the frontage road. The
closures was between Exit 91, Stem Beach, and Pueblo Boulevard. The highway was
reopened around 10:30am yesterday following repair of the electric lines.
Morphew Trail officially delayed till next year.
Following a motions hearing that took place in Alamosa District Court yesterday,
Alamosa County Judge Amanda Hopkins has delayed Barry Morphew's trial until July
19th of 2027. Morphew is facing a first-degree murder charge connected to the death of
his wife on mother's day of 2020, the day Suzanne Morphew, 49, was first reported
missing by neighbors. Her remains were found in a shallow, fresh grave in September of
2023 near Moffat in Saguache County. Barry Morphew's retrial was originally
scheduled for this year, but defense attorneys requested more time to go through what
they say is a "mountain of discovery" in the case.
Two earthquakes struck near CO/NM border yesterday morning.
Two earthquakes struck near the Colorado/New Mexico border early yesterday morning.
According to The U.S. Geological Survey, a 4.2 magnitude quake struck around 3:21am
about 20 miles south of Segundo. The earthquake stuck at a depth of 6.2 km. The
second quake struck around 3:30am, a magnitude 4.0 quake, about 16 miles south of
Segundo, at a depth of 5 km. The USGS says shock waves could be felt as far away as
Pueblo and Monte Vista.
July 6th 2026
More evacuations issued for Aspen Acres fire.
More evacuations were issued for The Aspen Acres fire last night, to include all areas in
Fremont County that were on pre-evacuation status, including Fremont County Roads 15,
103 and 100, Newlin Ridge Road, Los Pinos Subdivision, Lock Mountain Estates and
The towns of Coal Creek, Rockvale and Williamsburg. The Aspen Acres fire has grown
to 89,055 acres, making it the 7th largest wildfire in Colorado history, growing larger than
The High Park Fire, which burned 87,284 acres in 2012. The fire is now 14% contained
with a total of 1,101 fire personnel currently working the fire. Mild weather and air
support has helped moderate fire behavior and allowed firefighters to work directly on
the fire's perimeter in many areas. Dozer lines on the south east side of the fire are
continuing to be strengthened with multiple fire lines being built and improved around
Rye. All other evacuations and pre-evacuations do remain in place currently.
Huerfano County places fire and smoke advisory for upper Huerfano Area.
Out of an abundance of caution, Huerfano County has placed a fire and smoke advisory
for the upper Huerfano and Gardner area. The advisory is one step below a pre-
evacuation, and includes areas north of Colorado 69 from The Custer County line
following Highway 69 to Badito (Colorado 69 at County Road 616) and then north along
the eastern edge of the greenhorn mountain wilderness to the Pueblo County Line. Pre-
evacuation for Huerfano County south of the Rye area to Interstate 25 and south to
Apache City remains in place. The pre-evacuation notice for The Big Sheep Fire south of
Colorado 69 in Huerfano County has been lifted.
Victor Marx over takes State Senator Kirkmeyer in Rep GOV Primary.
Victor Marx overtook State Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer in The Republican primary for
governor last week, seizing a narrow lead after trailing her since polls closed on Tuesday.
Kirkmeyer, one of three candidates, started the night with a clear advantage, at one point
leading Marx by about 8,000 votes. Scott Bottoms remained in third place. By Thursday
afternoon, unofficial results show Marx received 206,330 votes, while Kirkmeyer
received 204,310 votes, out of some 518,051 votes cast. The race remains too close to
call. The winner will face Democrat Phil Weiser who defeated U.S. Senator Michael
Bennet in the democratic primary by almost 9 points. The candidates are vying to
succeed the term-limited Democratic Governor Jared Polis.
SLV's latest water trial continues today in Alamosa.
The San Luis Valley's latest water trial to defend subdistrict #1's approved fourth
amended plan of water management got underway last week before division 3 water
Court Judge Michael Gonzales. Matt Seitz of hrs water consultants took the stand for
most of the week, beginning by giving a history of water in the valley. Seitz is working
to support the state water engineer's defense of the plan while a sustainable water
augmentation group attorney attempted to show fault in Seitz' testimony under cross
examination. Craig Cotton and Cleave Simpson also took the stand last week, both
supporting the plan. Gonzales will have to decide the case and rule on whether or not the
water management plan will be implemented. The trial continues today in Alamosa.
CDOT speed enforcement program begins issuing warnings in Pueblo.
The Colorado Department of Transportation's Colorado speed enforcement program has
started issuing warnings to drivers who exceed the speed limit in the I-25/US50B
interchange reconstruction work zone in Pueblo. The speed enforcement program uses
camera technology to reduce speeding in high-risk corridors such as active construction
zones. Civil penalties carrying a fine of $75 will begin on July 30th.
July 2nd 2026
Big Sheep Fire pre-evacuations remain in place in Huerfano County.
The Big Sheep Fire remains at 50% containment due to controlled burnout operations
that took place yesterday designed to prevent a larger expansion of the fire. The fire is
now currently at 1,153 acres. Pre-evacuations remain in place given the possibility of
changing conditions and will be re-evaluated again at the end of daily operations today.
New evacuation warning issued last night in Aspen Acres fire.
An evacuation warning was issued late last night for The Red Creek Area from Siloam
Road, east to the area of Red Creek Springs Road and west to Highway 96 west.
Officials say if you are in that area, you are urged to evacuate immediately, as the fire
continued to make progress last night. All other evacuations remain in place currently.
The latest evacuations are the Town of Wetmore, including The Pueblo County Line to
Mackenzie Junction to The Fremont County line to the north. Colorado 96 is also now
closed between Pueblo and Mackenzie Junction. Colorado City to the north of Colorado
165, east of Table Mountain church, and west of crow cutoff is also under evacuation.
Under pre-evacuation currently is Colorado City to the south of Colorado 165. Northern
Huerfano County is also under pre-evacuation notice along the northern border of the
county, east to county road 670, south to Hayden Butte and west of Clennin Road.
Hatchet Ranch located to the west of Interstate 25 is also now on pre-evacuation notice.
And, in Fremont County, homes north of Wetmore along Highway 6, extending about 4.5
miles north of the Fremont-Custer County line, and homes two miles east and 2.5 miles
west of the highway are now under pre-evacuation notice. The fire was estimated
yesterday to have burned 47,953 acres and remains at 0% containment.
CO GOP Gov Primary may be headed for automatic recount.
While Colorado's primary election results continued to come in yesterday, the race
between Victor Marx and State Senator Barb Kirkmeyer has gotten very close and may
be headed for an automatic recount. Marx overtook Kirkmeyer for the lead last evening
by about 1,600 votes. Both candidates remained optimistic that they would become the
party's nominee for the November General Election. It could be weeks before a recount
is ordered. Ballots still need to be "cured" or fixed, including ballots without signatures,
signatures that didn't match the ones on file, and if there's a discrepancy with a voter's
identification. The deadline for The Secretary of State to order a mandatory recount is
July 24th.
Saguache residents evacuated Monday due to natural gas leak.
Saguache residents were evacuated from their homes early Monday Morning after a
natural gas leak from a high-pressure pipeline release valve sent a plume of gas over the
town. The leak was located on Gunnison Avenue between 11th and 12th Streets. It
produced a plume that moved over Saguache from the west-northwest. Firefighters went
door to door to evacuate residents on Gunnison and Denver Avenues from 11th Street to
7th Street. Xcel Energy Colorado technicians responded to the scene and were able to
clear the high-pressure relief valve. Xcel personnel are continuing to monitor the natural
gas facility and conduct any necessary repairs.
CDOT and multiple law enforcement agencies to hold 4th of July DUI enforcement period.
With the upcoming Independence Day weekend, The Colorado Department of
Transportation, The Colorado State Patrol and 30 local law enforcement agencies will
hold "the heat is on fourth of July DUI enforcement period", now through July 7th.
During this time, drivers may see saturation patrols, sobriety checkpoints and additional
law enforcement officers on duty dedicated to arresting impaired drivers. Last year, 207
DUI arrests were made during the 4th of July enforcement period. There were also 7
fatalities with suspected impairment.
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