2 found dead in area burned by Colo. wildfire

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa says firefighters have at least temporarily battled to a “draw” with a fast-moving fire that has already killed two people and destroyed 379 homes.

After nearly doubling in size, the fire held at about 25 square miles Thursday despite more swirling winds and bone-dry conditions. Little more than 36 hours after it started in the Black Forest area northeast of Colorado Springs, the blaze surpassed last June’s Waldo Canyon fire as the most destructive in state history. That blaze burned 347 homes and killed two people.

Maketa said crews on Thursday found the remains of two people who appeared to be trying to flee. The victims were found in a garage in Black Forest and apparently died in the first hours after the fire ignited Tuesday afternoon.

Earlier Thursday, residents were ordered to leave 1,000 homes in Colorado Springs. The evacuation was the first within the city limits. About 38,000 other people living across roughly 70 square miles were already under orders to get out.