Colorado fires could have been arson, officials say, as three people remain unaccounted for

Colorado authorities say a search warrant has been executed in connection with the cause of historic fires that destroyed more than 900 homes and more than 100 other structures after reported downed power lines were not located.

Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said at a press conference that three people remained unaccounted for and cadaver dogs would be brought in to search through the charred remains of homes.

"The debris is hot; it's now fallen in, and it's all covered with eight inches of snow – so search and recovery efforts are hampered substantially," Sheriff Pelle said on Saturday.

Regarding the cause of the fire, he said reports of downed power lines seemed more likely to be telecommunication lines near by. He gave no details of the search warrant executed but said tips had been pouring in regarding the cause of the fire.

"If it turns out to be arson or reckless behaviour with fire, we're taking appropriate actions," he said. "It was a red flag day, the day of the fire, so there shouldn't have been any burning of anything."

Sheriff Pelle said he’d spoken to a friend of a friend who was still looking for her grandmother after the fires - which began on Thursday morning, fuelled by dry conditions and more than 100mph winds - prompted the evacuations of an estimated 30,000 people.

Two of the missing were in Superior and one was in the “Marshall area,” he said.

“It’s not even safe to step into the scene,” he said on Saturday. “We don’t know what’s underneath. We don’t know about the heat or anything else. I had suspected we would have loss of life, just based on the size of this fire, the speed and the ferocity. I think it’s miraculous if it is three or not 100 or hundreds.”

He added: “The snow is an awesome thing for fire behaviour, and it’s a hard thing for crime scenes and recovery efforts and damage assessment and all of those things – so it’s a mixed blessing.”

Evacuation orders from Thursday had been lifted on New Year’s Day for many of the badly-hit areas but not all. Thousands of residents remained without gas and power as crews tried to restore utilities and authorities continued to assess damage and threats.

In Superior and Louisville, water was cut off on Saturday morning – further hindering residents whose homes had been spared amidst community-wide shell-shock.

The previous day, locals in those areas had been issued a boil-water notice because reserves had been used to fight the rapidly-spreading fires, leaving only untreated water for use.

Governor Jared Polis on Thursday declared a state of emergency in Colorado and on Friday spoke with President Joe Biden, who promised to expedite available resources, Gov Polis said.

The fires were followed by a blizzard which dumped inches of snow on the region and temperatures were in the single digits for most of early Saturday – adding an extra stress for locals without heat and concerned about freezing pipes.

The shelters set up for displaced residents – including those infected with coronavirus – were offering space heaters and blankets in addition to food and cases of water. Authorities on Saturday asked the public to refrain from dropping off donations, because sites were “overrun,” asking them to give money to approved entities instead.