BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — The investigation into the cause of the Marshall Fire that destroyed more than 1,000 homes in late December continues and could take several more months, officials said Thursday.
Fire investigators and Boulder County Sheriff’s deputies have been working with nearly 200 tips from the community, sifting through several 911 calls and interviewing hundreds of victims and witnesses.
In addition to the personal interaction, deputies have been searching through digital material and actual properties after obtaining warrants to do so. With that, hundreds of videos and photos are being reviewed in the search for a cause of the blaze.
Outside experts and members of the U.S. Forest Service are working on the investigation as well.
“We’ve done the interviews, gathered the evidence, looked at the videos that people have turned in, followed up on all the tips, that kind of thing,” Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said in early February.
“A lot of evidence now is in laboratories and with expert witnesses, people that investigate large fires for a living and are good at it, so we’re waiting now – just like the public – to get those results back and to be instructed about their findings. You know, this is potentially a multiple cause sort of investigation, and the outcomes of the investigation are critical, and the stakes are high in regard to liability, potential criminal charges, all those things. So, we’re being careful and going slow. We want to be really sure about what we come up with when we’re done,” Pelle said.
Once all the evidence is ready to go, it will be submitted to the district attorney’s office which will then determine if criminal charges will be filed.
Days ago, a BCSO detective commander said the sheriff’s office “recently obtained some additional evidence that is currently being analyzed.”