Colorado Springs – Search dogs have been brought into the charred Castle West apartment complex to look for bodies that may still be in the ruins, as well as for accelerants such as gasoline that may have been used to set the fire, authorities said this afternoon.
A cursory search of the 135-unit complex, which was destroyed by fire Tuesday, revealed two bodies. They remain in the building entombed in ice from the fire hoses.
John Leavitt, spokesman for the City of Colorado Springs, said a more thorough secondary search will begin once firefighters are able to shore up the unstable portions of the building. The second search will involve sifting through the large piles of debris as well as digging around collapsed structural material.
Police have arrested two men on suspicion of arson and first-degree murder. They are Gene Johnson, 36, and Derrick “Nicky” Johnson, 23. The two, who are believed to be cousins, were not residents of the building.
Police are asking that anyone who may have seen the two men walking near the building early Tuesday to call 719-444-7000.
The fire was declared under control at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, some 59 hours after it began. The Colorado Springs Fire Department still has a heavy rescue truck and a hazardous material truck at the scene to be available during the secondary search, Leavitt said.
Authorities said they have been unable to compile a complete list of the roughly 300 residents of the building because some people were living there without signing a lease.
Families or friends of the complex residents who have not heard from them since the fire are asked to call police at the same number, 719-444-7000.
