Wearing other people’s clothes and living in apartments that feel empty, families displaced by the Marshall fire have started over from nothing. It’s been six months since the wind-whipped fire skipped through Boulder County, burning about 1,000 homes in Superior and Louisville. Since then, winter has turned to summer, and thousands still are in limbo, […]
Marshall Fire Coverage
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Zornio: Marshall fire insurance analysis proves every homeowner needs to check their policy
With the cost of real estate soaring, breaking into Colorado’s housing market can feel like a dream come true. But if disaster strikes, owning a home can quickly turn into a financial nightmare. In Boulder County, many residents are learning this the hard way. After the most destructive blaze in the state’s history, hundreds of […]
Posted inHousing, News, Wildfire
Louisville allows Marshall fire victims to rebuild under older, less-stringent codes
LOUISVILLE — The Louisville City Council voted Tuesday night in favor of allowing residents whose homes were significantly damaged or destroyed in the Marshall fire, Colorado’s most destructive wildfire, to rebuild under less-stringent environmental standards. The council voted 5-2 to allow affected residents to rebuild under the city’s 2018 codes instead of the 2021 codes. […]
Posted inNews, Wildfire
Lawsuit alleges Xcel Energy power line sparked Marshall fire
The first lawsuit filed in connection with the Marshall fire, which destroyed over 1,000 homes and other buildings in Boulder County, claims that sparks from a power line started December’s blaze. The lawsuit filed Thursday against Xcel Energy says that its power lines and equipment were a “substantial factor” in the cause, origin and continuation […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Zornio: High-performance homes are the smart rebuild choice for Marshall fire victims
Two months after the Marshall fire burned through nearly 1,100 homes and structures in Boulder County, impacted residents now face the daunting task of rebuilding. Amid much uncertainty, many are finding hope in the prospect of building back better. “My family and I lost our home in the Marshall fire,” said Louisville resident Susan Nedell. […]
Posted inNews
Emergency alerts were a problem long before the Marshall fire, reports show
More than 10,000 calls warning residents to flee failed when the Waldo Canyon fire exploded near Colorado Springs in 2012. Thousands of people were left without warnings as flames destroyed 347 homes and killed two people. That same year, evacuation alerts were sent to the wrong phone numbers during the Lower North Fork fire — […]
Posted inNews
Marshall fire evacuation alerts reached as few as 1 in 5 who were meant to receive them
As few as 1 in 5 people who were sent warnings to flee the fast-moving Marshall fire confirmed they received them, newly released figures show. In all, fewer than 5,000 of the 24,289 phone calls, texts and emails that went out Dec. 30 were marked as having been received during the emergency, according to new […]
Posted inNews
First phone alert for the Marshall fire sent 42 minutes after it started — and only to 215 contacts
The first phone alert warning Boulder County residents to flee the Marshall fire was sent at least 42 minutes after flames broke out — at most to 215 people. By then, at least one structure had burned and the wind-driven fire was on its way toward consuming more than 1,000 homes and businesses, becoming the […]
Posted inNews, Wildfire
Marshall fire destroyed 1,084 homes collectively worth more than $513 million, authorities now say
The Marshall fire destroyed 1,084 homes collectively worth more than $513 million, Boulder County authorities said Thursday as they released an updated assessment of the fire’s toll. Another 149 homes were damaged in the Dec. 30 fire. Of the homes destroyed, 550 were in Louisville, 378 were in Superior and 156 were in unincorporated Boulder […]