As hundreds of firefighters made progress in slowing the eastward spread of the Aspen Acres fire, its expansion to the south and west prompted new pre-evacuation orders in Huerfano County.

Officials asked residents for patience as many areas, including the towns of Rye and San Isabel, remain under evacuation orders.

“Overall, progress has been made, but there’s still a lot of work left to do,” Alaska Complex Incident Management Team 1 incident commander Jake Livingston said at a news conference Monday afternoon. “We appreciate your patience.”

The wildland blaze, which started June 29, was at 98,609 acres with 36% containment as of Monday afternoon, according to Alaska Complex Incident Management Team 1. Incident officials said most of the east side of the fire is under containment, and phased reentry has begun in Beulah, Wetmore and parts of Rye.

Landowners calling about access to properties west of Rye overwhelmed the phone system on Saturday, causing it to crash multiple times. Officials have asked homeowners to make reentry inquiries by email at 2026.aspenacres@firenet.gov.

All Pueblo County residents whose homes were destroyed and who provided contact information to officials have been notified. Any affected residents who have not registered with the survivor portal are encouraged to do so as soon as possible so notifications can be made and resources can be provided.

Any residents needing assistance with ash sifting and other debris on their property can call the crisis cleanup hotline at 970-283-7325.

Officials announced the updated number of homes lost in Custer County was 84.

Also on Monday, Ross Gallegos, chief of the Rye Fire Protection District, posted an open letter to evacuated residents on Facebook, asking for continued patience.

“I understand the frustration of being unable to return to your home,” Gallegos wrote. “However, I want to be clear: it is not safe to return at this time.

“The fire remains less than 2 miles from the Town of Rye and continues to pose an immediate threat to life, property and public safety. Fire activity has remained unpredictable, with repeated periods of increased intensity that can rapidly change fire conditions.”

Gallegos asked residents who have been allowed to return to their homes to cooperate with firefighting efforts by remaining at or near their residences.

“This is not the time for sightseeing or photographing fire-affected areas,” the fire chief wrote.

Residents in zone C-5A in the northeast part of Custer County, including Wetmore, were downgraded to a “set” status and were told to remain prepared to evacuate.

Dumpsters have been placed in Wetmore for residents to use through Wednesday.

South of Custer County, new pre-evacuation orders in Huerfano County run across nearly its entire northern boundary and are within miles of Colorado 69. The orders come as officials believe the fire could continue its westward expansion.

On Sunday, heavy equipment crews worked to construct a fire line west of Rye to protect structures from an active fire area near North Muddy Creek, officials said.

Crews also worked to construct hand lines in the Wet Mountains on the southwest portion of the fire, where dozers were unable to reach, Alaska Complex Incident Management Team 1 Operations Section Chief Brad Washa said on Monday morning. Terrain and fire conditions have made those areas difficult for crews to combat directly.

If those lines do not hold, another dozer line in the southern part of the mountains, southwest of Colorado City, has been constructed, and officials are asking area residents to contact them if they are willing to thin vegetation near their property.

Additional lines were built miles west of the fire to protect Westcliffe and parts of Custer County not currently impacted by the fire. Growth around the Saint Charles Peak area overnight left firefighters uncertain whether the lines there will hold, as they hope it could be stopped by County Road 369 if it continues to expand west.

“Our desire is to hold it there,” Washa said. “Whether or not we’ll have the resources and the treatments in place to do that — we’ll see what the fire does.”

Several more fire lines to the west of the road have also been constructed, Washa added.

Although the east side is mostly contained, incident officials said they were concerned about pockets of heat in an area on the northeast side, where nearby juniper trees could ignite. Juniper trees are highly flammable and can burn intensely, the incident team said.

In Fremont County, residents north of the Aspen Acres fire are no longer on pre-evacuation status, according to the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office.

San Isabel Electric is still working to restore power to areas impacted by the fire.

In a Monday news release, the co-op said that power restoration times range from days to months. Customers are encouraged to contact the power provider directly.

Incident meteorologists expect this week’s hot, dry conditions to test established containment lines. The area forecast calls for sunny and breezy conditions throughout the week, with temperatures reaching the low- to mid-90s.

The Alaska incident management team is in the process of transitioning operational control to Northern Rockies Complex Incident Management Team 6. The new team will spend Tuesday observing the Alaska team before assuming full command on Wednesday, according to incident spokesman Al Nash.

“Fighting a fire of this magnitude takes a high level of skill and experience, and that’s exactly what the region will be getting from the incoming incident management team,” Nash said.

Both teams have operated internationally and they worked together in Australia, according to Washa.

Like the Alaska team, crews typically phase out after 14 days to rest and hand off to other units, especially when overall fire risk decreases. Washa said some fire crews who are near that mark have departed, while others have left to fight other fires in Colorado.

Several helicopters were also sent to two fires near Steamboat Springs that ignited on Sunday.

A community meeting will be held Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Centennial High School, 2525 Mountainview Drive in Pueblo.