Boulder County fire destroys nearly 1,000 homes, businesses

Two people were still missing and feared dead on Sunday after a massive fire that burned neighborhoods to the ground in suburban Denver. The blaze broke out on Thursday. “There are entire neighborhoods gone,” said Louisville, Colo., city councilman Caleb Dickinson. “It’s unbelievable. It’s really just down to rubble in so many places.”

What caused the fire? Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said investigators were pursuing a number of tips and had executed a search warrant at “one particular location.” Authorities have not ruled out arson. Pelle said the area was under a “red flag” warning on Thursday and burning of any kind was not allowed. Heavy snow that fell Saturday is complicating the investigation, he said.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read Janie B. Cheaney’s column about environmental stewardship and wildfires.