Marshall Fire burns 6,000 acres in Boulder County, more than 500 homes confirmed lost

BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- After nearly 24-hours of trying to get ahead of the Marshall Fire, crews and officials are turning their attention to assessing the damage made by the massive fire in Boulder County.

According to the Boulder County Sheriff's Office, the Marshall Fire was first reported Thursday around 11 a.m. The fire was the second fire reported in Boulder County.

Friday, officials said the Marshall Fire had burned 6,000 acres. Boulder Joe Pelle said at least 500 homes were destroyed during the fire in Superior, but projects there to be upwards of 1,000 homes destroyed.

This home on McCaslin Blvd is the only one left on this block in Louisville. What a miracle for the family who lives here. But, such a tough scene to see. @KRDONC13 pic.twitter.com/s5Sk4f1hvn

— Spencer Soicher KRDO (@spencersoicher) December 31, 2021

While the fire is still at 0% containment as of 10 a.m. Friday, officials say they don't expect the fire to grow significantly or cause any other damage beyond the burn area.

Pelle said there won't be an official number on how many homes and structures were lost until tonight or possibly Saturday.

The Sheriff's Office initially believed the fire was started from downed powerlines, however, at 1:04 p.m. Friday the Boulder Office of Emergency Management announced no downed powerlines were found within the ignition area.

According to BOEM, Xcel Energy crews did find compromised communication lines that may have been misidentified as powerlines. BOEM says communication lines (telephone, cable, internet, etc.) traditionally would not cause a fire.

Officials explained the fire moved quickly and rapidly through neighborhoods, jumping from road to road and house to house. While some neighborhoods are completely gone, others were missed.

At this time, residents are asked to stay away from evacuated areas. Officials say those areas are still dangerous and crews are still battling flames within those regions.

Anyone with general questions about the fire is asked to call (303)-413-7730 and leave 9-1-1 for emergencies only. However, officials say they aren't able to say what structures made it and which ones are gone. According to Pelle, a list of homes that are lost will be posted once the damage assessment is done but that could take at least a day.

Officials say not every home in the burn area was destroyed. Below is a map of the burn area:

As of 10 a.m. Friday there are no reported missing people linked to the fire. Officials say there was one person reported missing last night but she has since been found and is safe.

Officials say Xcel is working with first responders to safely restore power to people experiencing outages.

A large portion of US 36 is still closed while crews work. There are also additional road closures impacted in the area. Officials ask drivers to check the Boulder OEM website for the latest road closure updates.

Also, all trailheads east of Highway 93 to McCaslin and south of South Boulder Road to Highway 128 are closed.

Additionally, Superior and Louisville are both on boil water notice for the foreseeable future. Residents are asked to use bottled water or bring tap water to a full rolling boil for one minute, elevations above 6,500 should boil for three minutes. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment says to boil water even if it is filtered.

Watch the full press conference below: