Colo. officials work to find wildfire's cause

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Investigators are getting closer to pinpointing where Colorado's most destructive wildfire started, and that should help allow residents of the area hit hardest by the blaze to temporarily return home.

El Paso County sheriff Terry Maketa said Monday that local, state and federal investigators are "zeroing in on the point of origin" of the Black Forest Fire near Colorado Springs. He said they were working to bring in some heavy equipment to help that work.

Nearly 500 homes have been lost in the 22-square-mile fire, which is 75 percent contained. Two unidentified people who were trying to flee were found dead in the rubble.

There were no lightning strikes when the fire broke out June 11 amid record-breaking heat, so it's believed the cause must be a person or a machine.

Near Colorado Springs, the fire investigation is one reason authorities have been hesitant to let people back into the most developed area where there was concentrated devastation from the fire. They want to preserve evidence in what could turn out to be a crime scene. Firefighters are also working to make sure the interior of the burn area is safe, by putting out hot spots and removing trees in danger of falling.

Maketa said residents could be temporarily allowed back Tuesday or Wednesday. He said he understood that some people might want to go back for just a short time as part of their grieving process while others might want to stay for several hours and start cleaning up. He promised authorities would work with whatever their needs were.

"We're not ignoring you and we're with you," Maketa said.

-- AP