{"id":2809,"date":"2026-07-20T21:33:26","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T21:33:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=2809"},"modified":"2026-07-20T21:33:26","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T21:33:26","slug":"colorado-wildfires-memorial-procession-escorts-pilot-killed-while-fighting-gold-mountain-fire-to-dia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=2809","title":{"rendered":"Colorado wildfires: Memorial procession escorts pilot killed while fighting Gold Mountain fire to DIA"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A memorial procession is carrying the pilot who died while fighting the Gold Mountain fire near Ouray from Montrose to Denver International Airport on Monday.<\/p>\n

Read more Behind Sundance is an army of volunteers \u2014 from overseeing red carpets to shoveling snow. Here\u2019s how to apply<\/a><\/p>\n

Nicholas Dale, a 56-year-old federally contracted fire aviation pilot from Sooke, British Columbia, died after his helicopter crashed into the Silver Jack Reservoir in southwestern Gunnison County on July 12. He was the fourth firefighter to die while battling Colorado\u2019s summer wildfires.<\/p>\n

Three firefighters \u2014 Emily Barker, 38; Nick Hutcherson, 27; and Sydney Watson, 27 \u2014 were killed two weeks earlier when they were overtaken by flames on the Western Slope as two fires from Utah converged with two fires in Colorado, together forming the Snyder fire.<\/p>\n

As of Monday, that wildfire was 30,202 acres and 98% contained, fire officials said. The Gold Mountain fire, one of several still-active fires burning across Colorado, had consumed just over 38,000 acres at that time \u2014 Colorado\u2019s 19th-largest wildfire on record, according to state officials.<\/p>\n

Dale\u2019s memorial procession started in Montrose at 7 a.m. Monday and was expected to reach DIA around noon, according to Gunnison County officials.<\/p>\n

Alpine Bank, headquartered in Glenwood Springs, is accepting donations for Dale\u2019s family to an account it seeded with $10,000 at alpinebank.com\/goldmtnfire.<\/p>\n

Jump to:<\/strong>\u00a0Aspen Acres fire |\u00a0Gold Mountain fire | Elk fire | Willow fire | Air quality alerts<\/p>\n

Aspen Acres fire in Custer and Pueblo counties<\/h4>\n

Colorado\u2019s largest active wildfire has consumed nearly 101,000 acres and was 61% contained, according to a Monday morning update from fire officials. That\u2019s more than 157 square miles.<\/p>\n

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The 100,756-acre Aspen Acres fire remains the seventh-largest fire in the state\u2019s recorded history, behind the 2018 Spring Creek fire that consumed 108,045 acres, according to the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control.<\/p>\n

Fire officials have said the Aspen Acres fire has destroyed close to 900 structures, at least 337 of which are homes, according to law enforcement in Pueblo and Custer counties. The wildfire\u2019s growth has slowed in recent days as crews steadily increase containment around the flames.<\/p>\n

Mandatory evacuations remained in effect Monday for parts of western Pueblo and eastern Custer counties.<\/p>\n

More than 1,300 fire personnel remained on scene Monday, according to the morning update. Several hundred personnel left the fire over the weekend.<\/p>\n

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The following roads remained closed for the fire on Monday, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation:<\/p>\n