3 Firefighters Killed, 2 Injured Battling Wildfires Near Colorado-Utah Border

Three federal firefighters are dead and two others are being treated for serious burns after being overrun by a fast-moving wildfire in western Colorado on Saturday, June 27. If you live anywhere in the Four Corners region — or you're planning to be outdoors in the West this week — this story hits close to home.

The five fighters were caught in what's called a "burnover" — that's when firefighters are overtaken or trapped by a wildfire and are forced to take cover under emergency protective shelters they carry in their packs. Firefighters are trained to use their limbs to hold the corners of the shelters to the ground and create the best possible seal from heat and gases as flames pass over them. In this case, it wasn't enough for three of them.

The firefighters deployed their emergency shelters during the burnover incident on Saturday in Mesa County, Colorado. They worked for the U.S. Wildland Fire Service and U.S. Forest Service, and were part of an interagency response to the Knowles and Gore fires, which merged with other fires to form the Snyder Fire. So far, about 44 square miles have burned.

The conditions these crews were working in were brutal. Temperatures in Grand Junction hit a high of 93°F, with winds gusting to 44 mph, according to the National Weather Service. A spokesperson told NPR that crews this weekend had been dealing with single-digit humidity and fuel moisture readings between 2% and 8% — conditions that grounded helicopters and other firefighting aircraft on Friday afternoon and again briefly on Saturday. On top of all that, the cliffs and steep slopes in the area made the job even harder, making it difficult to get bulldozers and heavy equipment into position — slowing the overall response.

The names of the firefighters who perished were being withheld pending notifications to their loved ones, the Interior Department said.

The response from officials was swift. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis declared an emergency and authorized the use of the National Guard to tackle the fires. Polis stated the Colorado National Guard is assisting with efforts to recover the firefighters who lost their lives, saying he was "devastated" by the losses. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox also weighed in, with Cox thanking crews for what he called "several miraculous stops and saves."

This isn't an isolated incident — it's part of a broader wildfire emergency gripping the entire West. The danger is even higher this year because of Utah's record-low snowpack and its warmest winter on record. State officials said that over the past week, Utah has seen an increase in wildfire starts, with each fire showing unprecedented behavior that has stretched the state's wildland firefighting capabilities. Meanwhile, the largest blaze — the Cottonwood Fire — was burning out of control in rugged terrain in southwest Utah, ballooning to more than 146 square miles after destroying part of a ski resort and other summer cabins.

Nationally, nearly 4,688 square miles have burned since January 1 — more than the 10-year average. Some dozen fully or largely uncontained wildfires were burning across the desert Southwest on Sunday, including in Utah, Colorado, Nevada, and Arizona.

If you're anywhere in the West right now, pay attention to evacuation orders in your area and check in with local emergency management. This fire season is shaping up to be one of the most dangerous in recent memory — and it's not even July 4th yet.