BOULDER — The Lefthand fire was 60 percent contained Saturday, and all residents had been allowed back into their homes, though firefighters expected to continue battling hot spots for several more days.
Questions were turning to the cause of the fire, which some residents blame on the shooting and off-road-vehicle activity allowed on Forest Service land in the area.
The cause remains under investigation, but the Forest Service has deemed the fire to be human-caused, based on the location where the fire started and the lack of lightning or power lines in the area.
Firefighters made “good progress” beating back the flames Friday night into Saturday morning, Forest Service spokeswoman Maribeth Pecotte said.
“Things are looking good overall. We had cooperative weather with higher humidity, and that always helps,” Pecotte said.
Most residents of the 223 homes evacuated Friday returned later that day. Residents of the last 15 to 20 homes — all above Geer Canyon Drive — were allowed back in at 5 p.m. Saturday.
They gathered outside the Greenbriar Inn, hugging and exchanging stories and outrage before heading to a meeting with Lefthand Fire Protection District Chief Tom Stoffel about safety. After the meeting, they were released to their homes.
Sputtering with rage, 20-year Lefthand resident and volunteer firefighter John Pellouchoud said the Forest Service has dismissed resident concerns about the fire danger represented by off-road vehicles and shooting on federal lands for far too long.
“They’re being extremely cavalier, extremely uninformed, extremely negligent,” he said. “And put all of that in capital letters.”
The fire was first reported around 10:35 a.m. Friday in an area of the Lefthand Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation/Shooting Area.
Pecotte said investigators don’t know at this point what started the fire, but shooting and off-road-vehicle activity are possible causes, as well as campfires and cigarettes.
Asked if the Forest Service would restrict those activities after this extremely dry winter, Pecotte said Forest Service land is meant for recreational use.
Pellouchoud said shooting and riding in the area have started numerous fires in the past. Fighting the fires costs taxpayers money and puts firefighters at risk, he said, and he’s pondering filing a claim or a lawsuit against the Forest Service.
