EL PASO COUNTY, COLO. -- With improved weather conditions and substantial progress from firefighters on the ground, Waldo Canyon Fire incident commanders said they hope to have it 100 percent contained by Sunday.
Initially, full containment wasn't expected until July 16. However, an expedited push for federal resources, coupled with cooler temperatures and even some rain, have helped firefighters get a pretty good grasp on Colorado's most destructive wildfire.
The fire started in Waldo Canyon June 23 and grew to about 18,000 acres before climaxing Tuesday when it pushed over the foothills into Colorado Springs, destroying 346 homes in the Mountain Shadows subdivision and partially damaging dozens of others.
It is 80 percent contained as of Wednesday afternoon and fully protected from the Colorado Springs border.
"Containment" refers to the percent of secured fire lines around a perimeter of a fire. When a fire is fully contained, that means it cannot spread beyond the fire line perimeter in any direction.
The Denver Post reports an estimated $110 million worth of homes were lost, and more damages are expected to be released as officials estimate possessions lost and rebuilding.
Despite more than 32,000 people having been ordered to evacuate in El Paso and Teller Counties last week, only two people died.
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