Sudden, wind-fueled grass fire in Colorado forced thousands of people to evacuate and burned hundreds of homes, officials said
The National Weather Service said the situation was “life threatening” — urging residents of Superior and Louisville, about 8 miles from Boulder, to “LEAVE NOW.” The towns have a combined population of over 34,000, and the evacuations triggered frantic escapes and long traffic lines during the height of the holiday season.“Unfortunately, it’s kind of the perfect storm,” Superior Mayor Clint Folsom told The Washington Post. “We’ve had an extremely dry fall and winter thus far.
In Superior, a town with a population of about 13,000 known as a family-oriented community with open spaces and trails, the extent of the damage remains unknown, but Folsom said “we’ve lost some structures.”The unusual winter fires underscore the new frequency of extreme weather events. While there is “potential for fires year-round, depending on the conditions,” Folsom said, most fires in the area take place during the drier and hotter seasons.
The treacherous winds have resulted in road closures and toppled “high profile vehicles,” the Colorado State Patrol said in a
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