![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_0798-scaled-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\nA warm, dry winter throughout the West Coast has already caused multiple wildfires in Colorado and could be a sign of an aggressive fire year to come. <\/p>\n
Ella Jackson<\/p>\n
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California has deployed 15 fire engines and 53 personnel to help Colorado fight the over 85,000-acre Aspen Acres Fire, marking the first-ever Cal Fire deployment to Colorado under a national mutual aid partnership. \u00a0(Image via California Governor’s Office)<\/p>\n
The fire was reported on June 29 near a campground and prompted Colorado Governor Jared Polis to declare <\/a>a state of emergency. After an unusually dry winter, the state is facing \u201cextreme fire behavior,\u201d according to Newsom\u2019s press release.<\/p>\n Brent Pascua, a Cal Fire battalion chief from Sacramento, said conditions on the ground in Colorado are hot and dry, with little precipitation, and winds that \u201cwill blow the fire in any direction.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe forecast for the near future is potentially for these dry lightning storms to continue over the next few days,\u201d Pascua said. \u201cSo, it\u2019s really imperative that we stay there, we help out in any way we can, and we\u2019re there until the job\u2019s done.\u201d<\/p>\n The Aspen Acres fire is just one firestorm currently burning <\/a>in Colorado, scorching hundreds of thousands of acres and prompting mandatory mass evacuations.<\/p>\n On June 27,\u00a0 three firefighters were killed battling <\/a>the Snyder Fire along the Colorado-Utah border on June 27th, according to the Department of the Interior.<\/p>\n \u201cHotter, drier climates across the West are a daily reminder that there is no such thing as a \u2018fire season\u2019 anymore. At the same time, Trump has cut the workforce of the very agencies meant to spearhead wildfire preparedness, respond to emergencies effectively, and keep communities safe,\u201d Martinez said. \u201cFederal firefighters are doing what they can with what they have left.\u201d<\/p>\n This is the first time that California deployed crews to Colorado under the National Association of State Foresters state-to-state partnership that started in the 1920s, according to the governor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n Colorado has shown up for California in the past including the 2024 Park Fire in Northern California and the 2025 Eaton and Palisades Fires in Southern California. Now, California is returning the favor.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels great to get out there and help our neighbors,\u201d Pascua said. \u201cWhenever communities need help, it\u2019s nice to know that we can cross those borders, cross those state lines and go help our partners, our neighboring agencies fight the fire.\u201d<\/p>\n The July fires could be a sign of what\u2019s to come over the next few months after Western states saw record low snowpacks, according to Inside Climate News<\/a>.<\/p>\n In California, the intense El Ni\u00f1o<\/a> weather pattern could either bring thunderstorms with dry lightning, which can lead to fires, or it could bring summer and autumn showers that could end the fire season early. Experts have attributed the severity of both of these patterns to climate change<\/a>.<\/p>\n In May, Newsom announced $30 million<\/a> for regional wildfire prevention, to boost resilience across the state.<\/p>\n Over the past five years, Cal Fire expanded<\/a> its workforce adding an average of 1,800 full-time and 600 seasonal positions annually and grew its aerial<\/a> firefighting fleet.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel we\u2019re very well prepared, better prepared than we have been in the past,\u201d Pascua said, though he added that the Colorado fires are a reminder to residents to have emergency<\/a> plans figured out as warmer temperatures come to California this week.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/AspenAcresColoradoWildfireGetty.jpg\")
Fire crews drive past a structure destroyed by the Aspen Acres Fire as the wildfire continues to burn on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, near Beulah, Colorado. (RJ Sangosti\/MediaNews Group via The Denver Post via Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/GavinNewsomAP.jpg\")
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks about his state budget proposal on Thursday, May 14, 2026, in Sacramento, California. (Jeff Chiu\/AP )<\/p>\n