Elk Fire Update
July 28, 2026
Website: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/cogmf-elk-fire Email: 2026.elk@firenet.gov Phone: 970-299-5357
Social Media, Evacuation and Closure Information: https://linktr.ee/2026ElkPublic
Acres: 2,317 – Dynamic Containment: 37% – Detection: 07/09/26 Cause: Lightning – Personnel: 163 Location: 7 miles northwest of Lake City, Colorado
This will be Northwest Complex Incident Management Team 8’s last operational shift on the Elk Fire. Tomorrow, the incoming Rocky Mountain Team 1 will take command of the incident at 7 a.m. and manage it in conjunction with the Gold Mountain Fire. It has been an honor to serve the communities in and around Hinsdale and Gunnison counties, and to support the firefighters working hard out on the line to protect homes, property and other values at risk.
Operational Update: Yesterday, firefighters completed snagging operations along County Road 20 and Nellie Creek Rd (7877 Rd). Personnel and heavy equipment continued to improve control lines to the north of the fire.
Today: Crews will work to finish control line improvements along the 868 Road with masticators and chippers. All work to the south and east of the fire footprint has been completed, and fire personnel assigned to those areas have been reallocated to the north side.
After another infrared flight last night, heavy precipitation that contributed an estimated half inch of rain across the fire footprint today and continued evaluation and data analysis, fire professionals have increased the Elk Fire’s dynamic containment to 37 percent of the perimeter. This does not impact the Forest closure, which remains in place.
Dynamic containment is a new term in wildfire, but it’s not a new concept. Containment, by definition, means that fire has been held for several days by some combination of line, roads or trail systems, and natural barriers. It’s an inherently conditional situation, not a permanent accomplishment. It does not mean the fire is controlled, or that the fire is out. The term “dynamic containment” allows for the possibility that the containment number could change to more accurately reflect an evolving fire footprint and conditions. Below are common definitions of the different terms:
• Containment: This is a measurement of the percentage of finished fireline around the entire fire perimeter, directly next to the fire’s edge.
• Dynamic Containment: Treats containment as a fluid, shifting condition rather than a fixed physical line – adapting to changing weather, fuel behavior and natural firebreaks.
• Controlled: To construct fireline or use natural features to surround a fire and any related spot fires and reduce its burning potential to a point that it no longer threatens further spread or resource damage under foreseeable conditions.
Previous growth on the Elk Fire has occurred when four critical components were in place – red-phase beetle-kill spruce, near-record-high energy release component (98th percentile), 20 mph winds with thunderstorm outflows, and moisture levels in the fuels registering below 10 percent. Those four components have all been present only twice on this incident, and the most recent was more than a week ago.
Roads: PLEASE SLOW DOWN. Keep fire personnel and yourself safe. There is a reduced speed limit area of Highway 149 where firefighter traffic remains high. The Alpine Loop is open and there are no closures on County Road 30 (Cinnamon Pass) where trails and campgrounds remain open.
Weather: There is a 60% chance of showers and thunderstorms in the late morning and afternoon. Partly cloudy in the morning, becoming mostly cloudy in the afternoon. Valley temperatures will be 83°-86° and 71°-74° in the fire footprint, with winds 5-10 mph and afternoon gusts up to 15 mph along the ridgetops.
Evacuations: Current evacuation information is available at the links below:
Hinsdale County: https://hinsdalecounty.colorado.gov
Closures: The National Forest has implemented an area closure west of Highway 149 and north of County Road 20 in Hinsdale and Gunnison Counties. For further information visit: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/gmug/alerts The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has implemented a temporary emergency closure for public lands, roads and trails north of County Road 20 (Engineer Pass). The closure includes Nellie Creek, the Uncom-pahgre Trailhead and the upper portion of County Road 24 (North Henson) from Capitol City to the Wetterhorn and Matterhorn areas. For further information visit: https://www.blm.gov/programs/public-safety-and-fire/fire-and-aviation/regional-information/colorado/southwest-district
Road Closures: Forest Service Road 7868 (Alpine Road) remains closed. Some public maps display the route as Road 868. Forest Service roads 877 (Nellie Creek) and 870 (Matterhorn Trailheads) to the north are closed.
No Fly Zone: A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) over the area remains in effect. Flying drones near the fire is prohibited and can interfere with firefighting aircraft, potentially grounding aerial suppression operations. http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.
