Flames danced in Patrick Van Meter’s rearview mirror Monday as he sped away from southern Colorado’s devastating Aspen Acres fire with his wife and two dogs in tow.

“Usually, Colorado has beautiful blue skies,” Van Meter, 59, said two days later. “The whole sky was black. You couldn’t see nothing. It looked like it was nighttime at 3 in the afternoon.”

Van Meter was in Pueblo, about 30 miles away from his house in the Cedar Grove neighborhood, when his wife Nadine called with the news that they needed to evacuate due to a rapidly approaching wildfire. Van Meter raced home with just enough time to toss three outfits, crucial medicine and the couple’s dogs, Princess and Lucky, into the car. State troopers were banging on their door by that point, urging them to flee, Van Meter said.

Not long after, the Van Meters’ house — once the historic Cedar Grove Cheese Factory built in 1918, he said — burned to the ground.

His son’s ashes, his motorcycles, his wife’s wedding ring — all gone.

“It was devastating, and we felt helpless,” Van Meter said. “We lost everything we owned except what we took. It was a pretty horrific event, but by the glory of God, we are safe and we got the animals out. God closes one door, and he opens another.”

The Aspen Acres fire burning in Pueblo and Custer counties nearly doubled in size to 47,953 acres — roughly 75 square miles — on Wednesday, becoming the state’s largest wildfire and the No. 1 firefighting priority in the nation, according to emergency managers.

The fast-moving wildfire, fueled by strong winds and single-digit humidity, destroyed more than 180 structures in the two counties, injured a firefighter and forced new evacuations Wednesday, according to the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office. There is zero containment.

Entire communities — Beulah, Rye, San Isabel and, on Wednesday, the town of Wetmore — have been ordered to evacuate. The Aspen Acres fire was burning 2 miles away from the popular tourist destination Bishop Castle, officials said.

This devastating wildfire has upended lives across southern Colorado, destroying homes, memories, and entire neighborhoods in its path. For families like the Van Meters and Marilyn Mondragon Wren, who lost two of three homes in Beulah, the loss is profound — cherished possessions, family heirlooms, and a sense of security gone in an instant.

Yet amid the destruction, stories of resilience and community support shine through. From GoFundMe campaigns to neighbors helping neighbors, Coloradans are rallying together as hundreds of firefighters from across the country converge on the blaze. The Aspen Acres fire’s rapid growth and zero containment highlight the challenges of battling wildfires in a region prone to extreme conditions.

As investigations continue and recovery efforts begin, this tragedy serves as a stark reminder of nature’s power — and the human spirit’s capacity to rebuild even after losing everything.