BOULDER COUNTY, Colo — All restrictions for residents within the CalWood Fire evacuation areas have been lifted, according to the Boulder County Office of Emergency Management (BOEM)
Residents can return home, but are asked to remain on alert and be ready to evacuate again should fire conditions change. They may need to provide proof of residency to sheriff’s office deputies stationed at entry points depending on the route they take to their residence.
The fire is 55% contained and has burned 10,073 acres since beginning Oct. 17 in the afternoon. It is the largest fire recorded in Boulder County.
BOEM said Sunday that the fire had damaged at least 26 houses and released a list of the structures.
> Video above: Firefighters say they're optimistic about progress on Calwood Fire.
Due to forecasted fire behavior and gusty winds, BOEM had issued a mandatory evacuation on Wednesday for Lyons Park Estates to allow residents time to evacuate and prevent issuing an order in the middle of the night.
Fire officials said the mandatory evacuations were enacted out of an abundance of caution as windy conditions were expected to pick up throughout the day. Deputies went door-to-door to notify Lyons Park Estates residents of the evacuation.
Fire officials said they've tracked the fire's origin down to half of an acre, according to a Tuesday community Facebook update by BOEM. Officials are looking for witnesses as to how the fire started.
Teams have accessed about two-thirds of the burn area. The assessment has focused on homes, and officials said Tuesday that some non-permitted structures, like RVs or outbuildings, may have fallen to the fire, but they will have to wait until the heat lets up to check.
On Wednesday, dozers, engines and hand crews worked on the southeastern side of the fire to build a line as the fire backs down the hill toward Spruce Gulch, fire officials said.
On the northeast side of the fire, crews continued work on the canyon's edge and in the Highway 7 corridor with the goal of keeping the fire south of Highway 7, according to fire officials.
U.S. National Weather Service Incident Meteorologist Derek Williams said a cold front approaching Saturday and Sunday will help the fires.
Several roads remain closed due to the fire. A list of road closures is here. U.S. 36 reopened Monday afternoon between North Broadway and Neva Road.
The causes of the CalWood Fire and the Lefthand Canyon Fire, which started Sunday just to the south, were under investigation.
The Rocky Mountain Black Type 2 Incident Management Team took over command of both the CalWood Fire and the Lefthand Canyon Fire on Monday morning.
> Watch below: How big of a threat are wildland fires to major cities?
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