Hot, dry and windy conditions are fueling a fast-moving wildfire in Utah, forcing the governor to declare an emergency and restrict fireworks as critical weather across the West gives way to mounting concerns that anything could cause a spark.
Firefighters are facing more challenges on the ground from what fire managers and experts call unprecedented conditions.
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Smoke rises from the Cottonwood Fire near Beaver, Utah, on Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
A plume of smoke rises from the Cottonwood Fire, Friday, June 26, 2026, near Beaver, Utah. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
This undated image provided by the U.S. Forest Service Friday, June 26, 2026, shows firefighters responding to the Cottonwood Fire on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, above Birch Lake, near Beaver, Utah. (Mike McMillan/U.S. Forest Service via AP)
A plume of smoke rises from the Cottonwood Fire, Friday, June 26, 2026, near Beaver, Utah. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Air tankers and helicopters were grounded Friday as winds picked up on the Cottonwood Fire, the largest blaze currently burning in the U.S. Gusts were clocked at 45 miles per hour (72 km/h) and humidity levels were in the single digits, leaving crews with few options for slowing the flames, especially as they raced through the treetops.
“We are not expecting the weather to be kind to us for the next couple of days,” said Alyssa Mason, a spokesperson assigned to the fire. "We are seeing extreme fire behavior out there with some crown runs and definitely some spotting.”
Burning in a sparsely populated area of southern Utah, the Cottonwood Fire ballooned Friday to more than 112 square miles (290 square kilometers). One of several large wildfires burning in Utah, it severely damaged the Eagle Point ski resort in Beaver County and forced evacuations. In the community of Marysvale, the smoke blocked out the sun Friday as ash rained down.
“We’re looking at a full 48 hours of critical weather that we have not seen in Utah in the last five years,” meteorologist Jason Straub told a community meeting in Beaver County Friday evening.
A cold front on Sunday will bring winds that could push the fire in new directions before the weather starts stabilizing next week, he said.
The smoke pushed mostly east, meaning air quality at popular vacation spots like Zion and Bryce Canyon national parks — located far south of the flames — hasn’t been significantly affected beyond some haze in the Bryce area.
Still, the plume was visible from miles away, even as far as Colorado.
It's like nothing seen in recent memory, Utah state forester Jamie Barnes said earlier this week. She acknowledged that fires are spreading farther and faster “under conditions that defy historical expectations.”
Nationally, nearly 3 million acres have burned since the start of the year, pushing the U.S. ahead of the 10-year average. The National Interagency Fire Center said firefighters are making progress on containing fires from Alaska to Florida.
Conditions including low humidity and strong winds have triggered red flag warnings across a wide swatch stretching from Idaho to southern Arizona and New Mexico. Some of the forecasts predicted winds of 25 to 35 miles an hour (40 km/h to 56 km/h), with the worst conditions expected from northern Arizona into central and southern Utah.
At Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, officials were preparing for a power outage on Saturday. The utility that serves the area had warned that it would likely initiate a safety outage in hopes of lessening the risk of wildfire in the area.
Visitors will be able to purchase park passes at entrance stations as long as backup power systems remain operational, but park officials said visitors should come prepared. That means downloading maps and other important information before arriving and ensuring that phones and other electronic devices are fully charged.
Power shutoffs have become more common in the West as wildfire risk has expanded. It's usually a last resort after utility forecasters weigh factors like sustained wind and gust speeds, available fuels and topography.
With extreme fire conditions persisting, Rocky Mountain Power has issued a public safety power shutoff watch/warning for areas of central, southern and eastern Utah through the weekend.
Tim Brown, a research professor and director of the Western Regional Climate Center, said the potential for extreme fire behavior will remain as long as it’s hot, dry and windy. He pointed to parts of the West that have been mired by persistent drought, including Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico.
“I would not be surprised to see a lot of restrictions come out as we get closer to the July Fourth weekend,” he said. “People really need to be aware of their surroundings if they’re going to be out in the forested campground areas and grassland areas.”
Gov. Spencer Cox set the temporary fireworks restrictions through July 5 as the nation prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary, saying “this year is different.”
While the Cottonwood Fire's cause was unknown, the governor’s order noted that humans have been the cause of most fires in the state so far this year.
Even in Florida, where there have been multiple brush fires, authorities are urging people to skip the personal fireworks and instead leave the pyrotechnics to professionals putting on carefully planned shows.
Back fire camp, Mason talked about Utah's snowpack and steam flows peaking early in March, resulting in what she called extreme dryness. Then came the wind storms like never seen before, she said.
“If anything happens out there, any kind of spark hits fuels," she said, "it is more than likely going to start a fire and more than likely going get pretty big pretty quick.”
Smoke rises from the Cottonwood Fire near Beaver, Utah, on Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
A plume of smoke rises from the Cottonwood Fire, Friday, June 26, 2026, near Beaver, Utah. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
This undated image provided by the U.S. Forest Service Friday, June 26, 2026, shows firefighters responding to the Cottonwood Fire on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, above Birch Lake, near Beaver, Utah. (Mike McMillan/U.S. Forest Service via AP)
A plume of smoke rises from the Cottonwood Fire, Friday, June 26, 2026, near Beaver, Utah. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
DETROIT (AP) — Keider Montero and Emmanuel De Jesus combined for a five-hitter while both Venezuelans wore hats embroidered with “VZ” after this week’s earthquakes, and the Detroit Tigers beat the Houston Astros 8-0 on Friday night.
James Outman hit a three-run homer, and Kerry Carpenter and Colt Keith also homered for the Tigers.
Montero (4-5) took the mound shortly after a moment of silence for the victims of the earthquakes that struck Wednesday and left more 920 dead and more than 51,000 missing as of Friday night. He pitched seven innings and gave up five hits, struck out three and walked one.
De Jesus pitched the final two innings, striking out one and walking one.
ORIOLES 3, NATIONALS 1
BALTIMORE (AP) — Trevor Rogers pitched into the seventh inning and Blaze Alexander hit a two-run single to lift Baltimore to a victory over Washington.
Washington has lost four straight and seven of nine.
Rogers (5-7) followed up his seven one-hit innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers last weekend by allowing a run and five hits in 6 1/3 innings Friday. He struck out seven without a walk.
Tyler Wells finished the seventh, Grant Wolfram struck out two in the eighth and Ryan Helsley worked a perfect ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.
Andrew Alvarez (1-1) permitted two runs and six hits in 4 1/3 innings.
RAY 6, DIAMONDBACKS 1
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Junior Caminero hit a three-run homer in the first inning, Cedric Mullins connected in the seventh — both off Zac Gallen — and Tampa Bay beat Arizona.
Caminero hit a 427-foot shot to center in the first after Yandy Díaz walked and Jonathan Aranda was hit by a pitch. Caminero has 20 homers this season, five in the last four games.
In the seventh, Mullins had a solo shot for his seventh of the year. Gallen (3-7) pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowing five earned runs.
Nick Martinez (7-2) pitched 5 2/3 innings, giving up five hits but only one earned run. He struck out three and walked one.
Geraldo Perdomo hit a solo home run on the seventh pitch of the game for the Diamondbacks.
RED SOX 6, YANKEES 1
BOSTON (AP) — Payton Tolle took a perfect game into the sixth inning and gave up only one hit over seven scoreless, Willson Contreras homered over the Green Monster and out of Fenway Park, and Boston beat New York.
Connor Wong added two RBIs as Boston posted its second straight victory over the Yankees.
Both dugouts and bullpens emptied after Contreras walked on an inside pitch. He said something to pitcher Will Warren as he was trotting to first and Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt got in front of him at the bag as he yelled toward the mound.
PHILLIES 2, METS 1
NEW YORK (AP) — Derek Hill robbed Juan Soto of a two-run homer with a spectacular catch that helped Zack Wheeler and Philadelphia beat New York Mets.
Trea Turner drove in Hill with a tiebreaking single in the seventh inning, and Philadelphia spoiled Andy Green’s debut as Mets interim manager by handing New York its seventh consecutive defeat.
MARINERS 3, GUARDIANS 1
CLEVELAND (AP) — Colt Emerson homered, J.P. Crawford singled in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning and Seattle beat Cleveland.
Luis Castillo (3-7) allowed a run on four hits in six innings for his first victory since May 31. Andrés Muñoz retired the Guardians in order in the ninth for his 15th save in 20 opportunities.
Kahlil Watson had his seventh RBI in eight games for the Guardians, who fell to 3-7 since All-Star third baseman José Ramírez was placed on the injured list after he broke a bone in his left hand June 13 against Detroit.
RANGERS 5, BLUE JAYS 4
TORONTO (AP) — Nathan Eovaldi struck out nine in seven shutout innings to win his third straight start, Justin Foscue homered and drove in three runs, and Texas held on to beat Toronto.
Jacob Latz pitched the ninth for his 16th save in 18 chances as Texas survived a late Toronto rally to win for the fifth time in eight games.
Eovaldi (8-7) walked Daulton Varsho in the second and didn’t allow a hit until Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singled in the fourth. Eovaldi allowed five hits.
The Rangers led 5-0 after seven, but after Robby Ahlstrom retired one of the three batters he faced in the eighth, Jakob Junis came on and gave up Guerrero’s two-run single that made it 5-2. Kazuma Okamoto followed with a two-run homer to make it 5-4.
REDS 6, PIRATES 4
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pinch-hitter Noelvi Marte hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the eighth inning after Cincinnati scored four runs off Paul Skenes in the second, and the Reds beat Pittsburgh.
Given a 1-0 lead on Konnor Griffin’s homer leading off the first, Skenes allowed RBI singles to Spencer Steer and Tyler Stephenson and sacrifice flies to Blake Dunn and Elly De La Cruz. After the singles put the Reds ahead 2-1, Cincinnati loaded the bases with no outs when a called third strike by umpire Jeremie Rehak against Matt McLain on a full-count pitch was changed to a ball in an ABS appeal.
Skenes, the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, gave up four runs, six hits and two walks while striking out seven in five innings. His ERA rose from 2.86 to 3.10.
With the score 4-4, Sal Stewart singled off Mason Montgomery (2-3) with one out in the eighth and Marte followed with a 405-foot homer.
WHITE SOX 22, ROYALS 1
CHICAGO (AP) — Tristan Peters hit a grand slam and had six RBIs, Miguel Vargas had a three-run homer and an RBI double in Chicago’s 10-run third inning, and the White Sox routed Kansas City.
The White Sox, who have won five straight against the Royals, set or tied season highs for runs, hits (23), homers (five), margin of victory (21) and runs in an inning (10 in the third). Chicago scored its most runs since a 22-13 win at Boston on May 31, 1970.
David Sandlin (2-1), who was called up from Triple-A Charlotte earlier Friday, allowed one run and had six strikeouts in six innings. The 25-year-old rookie gave up three hits and walked three.
Jacob Gonzalez, Andrew Benintendi and Kyle Teel also homered for the White Sox. Gonzalez and Vargas drove in five runs apiece, Teel had three RBIs and Chase Meidroth went 4 for 5 with two RBIs.
BREWERS 6, CUBS 2
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Jacob Misiorowski threw a 105.5 mph pitch, tying for the third-fastest since tracking began in 2008, winning for the eighth time in nine decisions to lead Milwaukee over Chicago for their fifth straight win.
The 24-year-old right-hander reached 105.5 mph with his third pitch of the game, which Pete Crow-Armstrong fouled off to the third-base side. Misiorowski matched the 105.5 mph of the Los Angeles Angels’ Ben Joyce on Sept. 3, 2024, behind only 105.8 mph by Aroldis Chapman for Cincinnati on Sept. 24, 2010, and 105.7 mph by Chapman for the New York Yankees on July 18, 2016.
Misiorowski (9-3) didn’t allow a hit until Seiya Suzuki’s leadoff home run in the sixth. He allowed one run, two hits, two walks and two wild pitches over six innings while striking out eight.
Misiorowski threw 55 pitches of 100 mph or higher, including 40 of 101 mph or more.
TWINS 9, ROCKIES 8, 10 INNINGS
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Royce Lewis slipped an RBI single up the middle in the 10th inning and Minnesota beat Colorado after blowing a seven-run lead.
Lewis had his first career walk-off hit and Minnesota’s first of the season.
Pinch-running for Josh Bell at second, Kyler Fedko advanced to third base on a wild pitch by Jimmy Herget (0-2) before Lewis hit a grounder past a diving Ezequiel Tovar at shortstop. The Twins won for the seventh time in 11 games.
Hunter Goodman hit a two-run home run to cap a five-run ninth inning and give the Rockies, who trailed 7-0 after seven innings, an 8-7 lead. Jake McCarthy hit a three-run shot two batters earlier off Eric Orze.
MARLINS 4, CARDINALS 0
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Max Meyer gave up two hits in seven innings, leading Miami over St. Louis to improve his record to 9-0.
The Marlins scored two runs in the eighth when Graham Pauley and Kyle Stowers each drove in a run. Jakob Marsee’s two-out single off Max Rajcic in the ninth scored the final two runs.
Miami has won seven of its last eight games and is 17-5 this month. The Cardinals have lost six of their last eight.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Enmanuel de Jesus throws against the Houston Astros during the ninth inning of a baseball game Friday, June 26, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
