Fighting the Ferris Fire has cost an estimated $13.4 million, as up to 658 personnel continue full suppression efforts across the more than 60,105-acre wildfire raging northwest of Dolores.
Expenses accumulate by more than $1 million per day, according to officials with California Team 7, the pre-built critical incident team that took over logistical management earlier this week.
Team spokesman Joe Zwierzchowski said air support, especially fuel, is the largest expense at the moment, although costs fluctuate yearly with inflation. This year, he said it doesn’t appear astronomically more expensive than what is expected annually.
Paying for shelter, daily meals and salaries for Ferris Fire firefighters comes in second for costliness. And, Zwierzchowski said, the fire is not going away soon.
The fire’s west side that flanks the Dolores River Canyon gives away to steep terrain where it’s simply impossible to station crews for direct suppression.
“We anticipate this fire and operations to be ongoing for some time. This isn’t a two- or three-day fire, as folks can tell. ,” Zwierzchowski said.
That being said, the budget for fighting a wildland fire of this nature doesn’t cap, he said.
Zwierzchowski said suppression costs are divided among the jurisdictions where fires burn.
For instance, the U.S. Forest Service is responsible for paying its roughly 48,000-acre portion (as of Thursday) of the Ferris Fire; BLM is in charge of roughly 10,800 acres while the state of Colorado pays for what affects private land (currently at about 1,300 acres).
The U.S. Forest Services operates on pre-existing contracts that are negotiated before firefighting season, Zwierzchowski said, including contracts for services like air support or the suppliers of breakfasts, lunches and dinners.
On a broader level, robust fiscal figures are annually set by the U.S. Congress, then provided in appropriation bills. U.S. Forest Service has set aside $2.3 billion for wildland firefighting during the 2026 season, according the San Juan National Forest spokeswoman Morgan Bennett.
BLM falls under the U.S. Department of the Interior, as well as other Interior bureaus such as the National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and others.
Under a presidential fiscal request for 2026, resources and operations for firefighting were consolidated for the Interior bureaus under a newly established U.S. Wildland Fire Service.
The fiscal budget requested for the WFS is $6.55 billion. The figure provides $3.7 billion for WFS operations account and $2.85 billion for the combined wildfire suppression operational reserves.
The wildland fire crisis in the United States is marked by increasing frequency and intensity in scale, threatening homes, infrastructure and economic opportunity, according to a U.S. Department of Interior’s 2026 budget report.
Last June, wildfires scorched more than 1.1 million acres.
In California alone, wildfires from January 2025 took 29 lives and destroyed 16,000 homes with estimated losses between $76-$131 billion, according to data from the U.S. Department of the Interior.
On the Ferris Fire’s 12th day, it grew to touch San Juan National Forest, Bureau of Land Management land, and roughly 1,300 acres of private property.
The situation prompted Gov. Jared Polis’ office to declare a disaster emergency Wednesday, triggering an emergency operational plan. The state now can seek federal reimbursement through a grant aided by disaster-assistance programs.
Zwierzchowski said the Ferris Fire has been fortunate to receive resources officials have asked for.
Wildfires broke out widely in the Great Basin and Rocky Mountain area, but national demand is lower, allowing Colorado to seek out more assistance.
Though, he said, that could change further along, given hot spots in California and the Pacific Northwest have experienced a slower start this season.
Resources for the Ferris Fire have stemmed from across the country, with personnel from 24 states, including Hawaii, Florida and South Carolina.
On Saturday, the Dove Creek Fairgrounds spike camp will be fully established and running, while another camp is near the Salter Y area. It takes about an hour and a half to drive from Cortez where operations are run out of the Montezuma-Cortez High School to Benchmark Lookout Tower, the fire’s northeastern corner.
“We are moving everything from Cortez to Dove Creek. We are expanding our logistical footprint to support the firefighters out there. Team 8 is just as qualified as Team 7 but we have additional people to help get the handle,” Zwierzchowski said.
Reader Comments