Colorado wildfire: Blaze that destroyed 27 homes was human-caused, say officials

The wildfire in the US state ofColorado that tore through 39 square kilometres and destroyed 48 buildings was human-caused, the news agency Associated Press reported early Saturday (Aug 10) citing officials.

This finding comes a day after the Larimer County Assessor released a report on Thursday (Aug 8) saying that 27 homes were destroyed, along with 21 outbuildings, and another four homes were damaged.

One person found dead

Add WION as a Preferred Source

The Alexander Mountain Fire burning near Loveland, was one ofseveral conflagrations that started up late last month and threatened urban areas north and south of the state’s capital city.Most of the wildfires have now been contained.

The Associated Press reported that one person was found dead in a burned building. The deathcame in a fire near the town of Lyons that blackened more than six square kilometres.The person’s remains were discovered in one of five homes that burned, Boulder County Sheriff Curtis Johnson said last week.

Another wildfire believed to be human-caused

Officials believe thatanother fire south of Loveland, which burned at the same time, was also human-caused.

Also watch |Scores of wildfires scorches swaths of land across US and Canada

These wildfires in Colorado,part of nearly 100 burning across the United States (US) since late last month, have ledto thousands of evacuations as firefighters worked in oftentimes treacherously steep terrain beneath the buzz of helicopters and planes zipping between reservoirs and the blazes.

Almost 18,000 square kilometreshave burned nationwide so far this year, an area nearly the size of New Jersey and well above the 10-year average for this time of year.

(With inputs from agencies)