A firefighter from the Bighorn 209, a hand crew from the Crow Agency in Montana, check for hot spots on the Waldo Canyon Fire west of Colorado Springs, Colo., Friday, June 29, 2012. After declaring a "major disaster" in the state early Friday and promising federal aid, President Barack Obama got a firsthand view of the wildfires and their toll on residential communities. More than 30,000 people have been evacuated in what is now the most destructive wildfire in state history. (AP Photo/The Gazette, Christian Murdock)
Colorado Springs, Colo. • Melted bowling balls in the front yard were among the strange sights that met C.J. Moore upon her return Sunday to her two-story home, now reduced to ashes by the worst wildfire in Colorado history.
"Which is just hysterical. You wouldn’t think bowling balls would melt," she told the Associated Press by phone from the scene in her Mountain Shadows neighborhood.
Moore was one of many residents allowed temporary visits to the most devastated of the area’s neighborhoods. Almost 350 homes burned to the ground last week in the Waldo Canyon fire, one of many still raging across the West.
A line of cars a mile long queued up at a middle school checkpoint, where police checked the identification of returning residents and handed them water bottles.
While searching for her great-grandmother’s cast-iron skillets, Moore marveled at the juxtaposition of what burned and what hadn’t. She found stainless steel kitchenware, a vase lamp, a concrete frog.
"To find my mail in my mailbox, unscathed. It’s just unreal. Unreal," she said. "Bird baths are fine. Some of the foliage is fine."
Three neighbors’ homes were unscathed. Only concrete remained of other homes, including hers. Cars were burned to nothing but charred metal.
"Good lord! I’ve never seen anything like this. And thank God there was nobody there. Thank God there were no people here. There would have been no been no hope."
About 10,000 people remain evacuated, down from more than 30,000 at the peak of the Waldo Canyon fire, but authorities said Sunday morning they hoped to lift more evacuation orders.
The 26-square-mile fire was 55 percent contained as of Sunday night. It was one of many burning across the West.
story continues below
Rich Harvey, incident commander, said crews continue to make good progress.
"We’re cautiously optimistic," he said Sunday morning. "We still remain focused on things that could go wrong."
About 1,500 personnel were fighting the Waldo Canyon fire, and authorities said they were confident they had built good fire lines in many areas to stop flames from spreading.
Authorities are still trying to determine the cause of the fire that broke out on June 23, and which so far has cost $8.8 million to battle. Dangerous conditions had kept them from beginning their inquiry, but investigators were able to start their work on Saturday.
Two bodies were found in the ruins of one house, one of almost 350 destroyed in this city 60 miles south of Denver. The victims’ names haven’t been released. Police Chief Pete Carey said Saturday afternoon the approximately 10 people who had been unaccounted for had now been located.
Police did not expect to discover other victims in the rubble.
More than 150 National Guard soldiers and airmen helped Colorado Springs police staff roadblocks and patrol streets.
Next Page >Copyright 2012 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Colorado Springs, Colo. • Melted bowling balls in the front yard were among the strange sights that met C.J. Moore upon her return Sunday to her two-story home, now reduced to ashes by the worst wildfire in Colorado history.
"Which is just hysterical. You wouldn’t think bowling balls would melt," she told the Associated Press by phone from the scene in her Mountain Shadows neighborhood.
Moore was one of many residents allowed temporary visits to the most devastated of the area’s neighborhoods. Almost 350 homes burned to the ground last week in the Waldo Canyon fire, one of many still raging across the West.
A line of cars a mile long queued up at a middle school checkpoint, where police checked the identification of returning residents and handed them water bottles.
While searching for her great-grandmother’s cast-iron skillets, Moore marveled at the juxtaposition of what burned and what hadn’t. She found stainless steel kitchenware, a vase lamp, a concrete frog.
"To find my mail in my mailbox, unscathed. It’s just unreal. Unreal," she said. "Bird baths are fine. Some of the foliage is fine."
Three neighbors’ homes were unscathed. Only concrete remained of other homes, including hers. Cars were burned to nothing but charred metal.
"Good lord! I’ve never seen anything like this. And thank God there was nobody there. Thank God there were no people here. There would have been no been no hope."
About 10,000 people remain evacuated, down from more than 30,000 at the peak of the Waldo Canyon fire, but authorities said Sunday morning they hoped to lift more evacuation orders.
The 26-square-mile fire was 55 percent contained as of Sunday night. It was one of many burning across the West.
story continues below
Rich Harvey, incident commander, said crews continue to make good progress.
"We’re cautiously optimistic," he said Sunday morning. "We still remain focused on things that could go wrong."
About 1,500 personnel were fighting the Waldo Canyon fire, and authorities said they were confident they had built good fire lines in many areas to stop flames from spreading.
Authorities are still trying to determine the cause of the fire that broke out on June 23, and which so far has cost $8.8 million to battle. Dangerous conditions had kept them from beginning their inquiry, but investigators were able to start their work on Saturday.
Two bodies were found in the ruins of one house, one of almost 350 destroyed in this city 60 miles south of Denver. The victims’ names haven’t been released. Police Chief Pete Carey said Saturday afternoon the approximately 10 people who had been unaccounted for had now been located.
Police did not expect to discover other victims in the rubble.
More than 150 National Guard soldiers and airmen helped Colorado Springs police staff roadblocks and patrol streets.
Next Page >Copyright 2012 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.