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3 firefighters killed on Colorado-Utah border as wildfires intensify
NPR • • general
Key Points:
- Three firefighters died and two were injured in a "burnover incident" while battling wildfires on the Colorado-Utah border, with survivors receiving treatment for burn injuries.
- The largest wildfire, the Cottonwood Fire in southern Utah, has grown to over 92,000 acres, damaging Eagle Point ski resort and prompting evacuations in nearby towns.
- Extreme fire conditions are driven by low humidity, high temperatures, strong winds, and prolonged drought, with Utah experiencing its lowest snowpack and warmest winter on record.
- Governors of Utah and Colorado have declared states of emergency, with Colorado deploying the National Guard to assist firefighting efforts amid stretched resources.
- Nearly 3 million acres have burned nationwide this year, with numerous large wildfires ongoing, and the National Weather Service issuing rare "particularly dangerous situation" red flag warnings across the western U.S.
