SUPERIOR, Canada (AFP) – Hundreds of houses are expected to be destroyed by fast-moving wildfires in Colorado, officials warned Thursday, as flames rage over areas dried by a historic drought.
At least 1,600 acres of Boulder County have burned, much of it suburban, with warnings that deaths and injuries are imminent as the flames engulfs hotels and commercial centres.
“We are aware that roughly 370 homes in the Sagamore development… had been destroyed. There is a possibility of 210 houses being lost in Old Town Superior “Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said during a press conference.
“The Superior Target retail centre is on fire, and the Superior Element Hotel is completely consumed.”
“I’d want to highlight that we would not be shocked if there were injuries or fatalities owing to the extent and severity of this fire and its presence in such a densely populated region.”
According to the Colorado Sun newspaper, a number of people were treated for burn injuries, with at least six patients being treated at one hospital.
Images shared on Twitter showed massive flames billowing over what seemed to be rows of dwellings.
One video shows a fire in a parking area, with trees and grass on fire and smoke blowing about.
Thousands of people have been ordered to escape the fast-moving fire, which is believed to have started when powerlines were knocked down by strong winds.
The National Weather Service has advised the 20,000-person town of Louisville, as well as the 13,000-person town of Superior, to evacuate because the situation is “life-threatening.”
Wind gusts of more than 100 miles per hour have been observed in some areas, fueling the flames and hindering firefighting efforts by prohibiting planes from flying.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis issued a state of emergency in response to what he described as a devastating fire.
Unlike past fires in the state, he noted, this one is not in the countryside; it is in a residential area.
“This is right in and around suburban sub-developments and retailers,” he explained.
“It’s similar to your own area. It’s like any of us living in our own area. As a result, 1,600 acres near a population centre can be, and in this case is, completely disastrous.”
Colorado, like most of the American West, is suffering from a years-long drought that has left the region dry and prone to wildfire.
Although fires are a normal part of the climatic cycle, clearing dead brush and reducing disease in vegetation, their extent and severity are growing.
According to scientists, a rising climate, primarily driven by human activities such as the unrestricted use of fossil fuels, is affecting weather patterns.
This prolongs droughts in some regions and causes abnormally heavy storms in others, both of which are projected to worsen as global average temperatures continue to rise.
Daniel Swain, a meteorologist at the University of California, tweeted that it was “hard to believe” that these flames were raging in December, which is typically a quieter month for wildfires.
“However, combine a record warm and dry fall, barely 1 inch of snow so far this season, and an extraordinary (100mph+) downslope windstorm…and the consequence is incredibly rapid moving/dangerous fires.”
