Boulder, Colorado, area wildfires: Hundreds of homes lost and tens of thousands told to evacuate in Superior and Louisville
[ad_1]
Sheriff Joe Pelle estimated 580 homes or other structures in and around Superior may have been lost.
A shopping center and a hotel in Superior also were engulfed by the flames.
“Historic” 80-100 mph winds, with gusts as high as 115 mph, fed the wildfires that injured at least six people, prompted a hospital to send patients elsewhere and forced the evacuation of Superior and Louisville near Boulder.
The Marshall Fire had burned at least 1,600 acres and had spread east across Superior and Louisville, the sheriff said. The other fire is known as the Middle Fork Fire, but there were no details about its size.
There currently are no reports of casualties or missing people, Pelle said.
“I’d like to emphasize that due to the magnitude of this fire, the intensity of this fire and its presence in such a heavily populated area, we would not be surprised if there are injuries or fatalities.”
Gov. Jared Polis, who declared a state of emergency for the area, said the flames were traveling the length of a football field in just seconds.
“Very little time to get out, very little time to even get the most important parts of your life and, yes, it’ll be a difficult process for Colorado families who are directly affected to rebuild their lives,” he said.
Louisville and Superior are about 4 miles apart, not far from Boulder.
At least six people are being treated for injuries related to one of the fires, a spokesperson for UCHealth told CNN. Kelli Christensen said no more information was available for the patients, who are at UCHealth Broomfield Hospital.
Another hospital, Avista Adventist Hospital, was prompted to evacuate its patients and employees. The facility has 114 beds, according to its website.
The US Census Bureau says Louisville has about 21,000 residents and Superior has 13,000.
“We…
[ad_2]
Source : cnn
