LITTLETON, Colo. — Two homes in a neighborhood north of Roxborough State Park were destroyed and another was seriously damaged in a fire early Sunday morning, according to West Metro Fire Rescue.
About a dozen other homes in the neighborhood were forced to evacuate "as a dense ember shower fell on nearby structures," firefighters said.
The fire started in one home, and strong winds help spread the flames to others, according to the fire department.
"The grass in the backyard was also set on fire by these fires, and it traveled down a fence towards a house on the other block," West Metro Fire public information officer Ronda Scholting said. "But because the homeowner had done some landscaping mitigation around his home and firefighters said he was out there with a hose, the fire did not get to his house."
Mike Uraine said he managed to hold the fire until crews were able to get to his side of the neighborhood and extinguish it.
"It was good that it didn’t come any closer, let’s put it that way," he told 9NEWS on Sunday. "It wasn’t much of firefighting with a garden hose, but it did keep the ground wet."
Firefighters were quickly able to put out the fires. However, about a dozen homes in the neighborhood had to be evacuated because of the ember shower, firefighters said in a Twitter post at 5:10 a.m.
No one was injured in the fire. Firefighters told 9NEWS it started in the back deck of one of the homes. It was deemed accidental, but Scholting said because of the damage, investigators can't determine exactly what started the fire on the deck.
"Obviously, when you step off a truck you just arrive and four and a half minutes later a second house is on fire and then a third right after that," she said. "The potential here was really great for the fire to continue to spread."
Uraine was stunned to see the sight. He and his sister are new to the neighborhood.
"Day two in this house," he said. "We owned it for a while and had some construction done, but we moved in on Friday."
Throughout Sunday morning, fire crews continued to work on hot spots inside the homes. Winds were strong in the area, West Metro Fire said.
The fire department said two of the homes that caught fire are a total loss, and the other home has $100,000 in damage.
Two cats and one dog are still unaccounted for. The pet owners shared descriptions of the animals in case neighbors spot them.
The cats are named Kya and Pope. Their owner said they are just under a year old. The dog's name is Katara. She is a 1-year-old German Shepard mix. The owner said she can be a bit skittish but is friendly.
Hands Across Roxborough, a small nonprofit in the area, is developing a plan to help the families affected by the fire.
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