Teller County neighbors return home after High Chateau fire

After a week of tense moments during the High Chateau fire, our cameras were allowed into the burn scar.

Neighbors returning home also seeing their community for the first time.

As Kris Martin opens her front door for the first time since the fire, she breaths a sigh of relief.

“It’s something we really were stressed about and i would have to say driving in here it didn’t look as bad as what we thought until we got up close to the house,” she said.

Now seeing the destruction the flames caused to the forest, Martin is surprised firefighters managed to save her home.

“I would say this is probably about 100 feet away from the front door and the perimeter of the fire gets closer,” she said as she walks around her home.

This is where she and her husband plan to retire and knowing they were close to losing it all is nearly unimaginable.

“When you realize something you’ve worked hard for and strived to get for a long part of your life could be taken away from you, it really tugs at you,” said Billy Martin.

But not everyone was this fortunate.

The reality is many people are forced to rummage through the rubble just to see what they can find.

For Ryun Pittman this wasn’t the case. He and his daughter arrived Saturday to see their home untouched by the flames.

“It’s an eerie, scary feeling not knowing if we were going to come back to our house or not. We didn’t know if it was going to be standing. We’re in a really and area here and it could very well have taken our house,” Pittman said.

As fire crews continue to check on the burn scar, homeowners are posting signs to show their gratitude.