PUEBLO, Colorado — A wildfire burning southwest of Denver forced the evacuation of thousands of residents and destroyed more than 160 structures as of Friday as erratic winds pushed the fire across two Colorado counties.

The Aspen Acres Fire is one of about 40 large uncontrolled fires burning primarily in the West, fueled by months of dry weather and a record lack of snow last winter in some places.

Fire crews were pumping water from the Pueblo Reservoir to fight the Aspen Acres Fire, which expanded overnight by 17 square miles (44 square kilometers), bringing it to nearly 105 square miles (272 square kilometers) on Friday without containment.

Evacuations were ordered for all of Colorado City, an unincorporated community of about 2,200 residents, as well as the cities of Beulah, Rye and San Isabel, according to the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office.

About 50 National Guard soldiers were sent Friday to help staff checkpoints on highways in Custer and Pueblo counties.

Guard members would also assist state park rangers as they bring in additional boats to keep boaters away from dewatering operations.

Fire crews on the western side of the Rocky Mountains had contained about 65% of the Snyder Fire on the Colorado-Utah border, where three members of a Helitack crew were killed and two others were injured last weekend when they were overcome by flames.

The Cottonwood Fire in southwestern Utah had grown to more than 147 square miles (380 square kilometers) by Friday, while the Babylon Fire in the southeastern corner of the state reached 133 square miles (344 square kilometers).