Five firefighters hurt or killed in Colorado wildfire burnover

Five federal firefighters were caught in a burnover in western Colorado on Saturday, June 27, leaving three dead and two others being treated for burn injuries. The incident forced shelter deployment as crews worked the wildfire in Mesa County.

The firefighters had been assigned to the Knowles and Gore fires near the Colorado-Utah border, part of a fast-moving blaze that spread across the Four Corners region. Their identities were being withheld pending notification of family members.

The fire complex was the Snyder Fire, which began as the Snyder Mesa Fire in east Utah’s Grand County before crossing into Colorado and merging with the smaller Jones and Knowles fires in Mesa County. By Sunday, it was about 28,000 acres and 0% contained, with evacuation warnings in place for smaller communities in Mesa County.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis declared a disaster emergency on Saturday and authorized the Colorado National Guard to support response efforts.

Elsewhere in the area, the Cottonwood Fire in Utah’s Paiute and Beaver counties was about 92,254 acres and remained 0% contained. The Iron Fire stood at about 41,467 acres and 38% contained, while the Cherry Fire was about 30,766 acres and 0% contained.

The U.S. Wildland Fire Service and the USDA Forest Service were supporting the firefighters’ families, friends and colleagues. The U.S. Wildland Fire Service launched earlier this year as part of a federal effort to unify and streamline wildfire response across public lands.