COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - The fire that destroyed hundreds of homes in the Colorado Springs area is still too dangerous for investigators to begin tracking down the cause.
El Paso County sheriff's Lt. Jeff Kramer said Thursday that U.S. Forest Service agents are waiting for firefighting commanders to indicate it's safe for them to enter the burned area.
Kramer said authorities have no indication so far about what caused the fire.
The FBI said it's working with local and state law enforcement agencies to determine if any of Colorado's fires were deliberately set.
Colorado Springs Mayor Steve Bach said hundreds of homes were lost to the fire. He said a more precise count could come later Thursday.
The fire charred 10 acres at the U.S. Air Force Academy, but no academy buildings were damaged.
The blaze is burning out of control in the mountains and within Colorado Springs. More than 30,000 evacuees have frantically packed up belongings and fled.
The wildfire is one of many burning across the parched West, blazes that have destroyed structures and prompted evacuations in Montana and Utah and forced the closure of a portion of Zion National Park.
Constantly shifting winds have made the battle a difficult one for firefighters, but Chief Rich Brown said their "triage" strategy inside the suburban neighborhoods is helping. Firefighters have been racing from one hot spot to the next, protecting houses adjacent to the ones in flames to prevent a domino effect.
Meanwhile, federal firefighters are working with U.S. Army bulldozer crews from nearby Fort Carson to create perimeter lines.
More than 30,000 residents have been forced to flee their homes and the list of evacuated neighborhoods continues to grow.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
