La Junta Mayor Joe Ayala Urges Trump to Approve Major Disaster Declaration for Aspen Acres Fire

Description: La Junta Mayor Joe Ayala is urging President Donald Trump to approve Colorado’s Major Disaster Declaration request for the Aspen Acres Fire, citing damage and ongoing flood risks... Read the Full Letter...

August 25, 2026

President Donald J. Trump
The White House
Washington, D.C.

RE: Colorado’s Major Disaster Declaration Request for the Aspen Acres Fire

Dear President Trump:

I’m writing as the Mayor of La Junta, but more importantly, as someone who calls Southern Colorado home.

Our community was fortunate not to be directly in the path of the Aspen Acres Fire, but the people who were affected are our neighbors. In rural Colorado, a county line doesn’t mean much when somebody needs help. We work together, we show up for each other, and when one of our communities is hurting, all of Southern Colorado feels it. Families have lost homes. Roads and infrastructure have been damaged. Businesses, ranchers and communities have been disrupted. And even though the flames have stopped advancing, this disaster isn’t over. The flooding and debris flows coming off the burn scar continue to threaten these communities, and the road back is going to be a long one.

Small communities are incredibly resilient. We’re used to figuring things out and doing a lot with a little. But there are times when the size of a disaster is simply bigger than what local communities can handle on their own. This is one of those times.

I strongly support Governor Polis’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration, and I respectfully ask you to approve it.

The people affected by this fire aren’t asking someone else to rebuild their communities for them. They’re asking for the resources to help them get back on their feet and begin the long work of rebuilding.

Southern Colorado will continue to stand beside them. I hope our federal government will stand beside them as well.

Respectfully,

Joe Ayala
Mayor
City of La Junta, Colorado

601 COLORADO AVENUE, LA JUNTA, CO 81050
719.384.5991 | www.lajuntacolorado.org

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