Colorado’s largest wildfire has burned more than 200 homes

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — A wildfire that has scorched more than 326 square miles since it started in mid-August, becoming the largest in Colorado history, has damaged or destroyed more than 200 homes, officials said.

As of Monday, the Cameron Peak Fire in northern Colorado had destroyed 426 buildings and damaged another eight, said David Moore, a spokesman for the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office. The affected buildings include 209 homes, 208 outbuildings and 17 buildings that were designated as businesses as part of the Shambhala Mountain Center, a meditation retreat in the mountains northwest of Fort Collins.

The fire ignited in rugged terrain near Rocky Mountain National Park on Aug. 13 and has charred some of the state’s most pristine land. Investigators have not said what caused the blaze, which is 64 percent contained.

Damage assessment crews were combing the area after snow and cold weather put a damper on the fire over the weekend.

Crews were trying to determine how many homes were damaged by Colorado’s second-largest recorded wildfire which forced evacuations and closed Rocky Mountain National Park.

The East Troublesome Fire, just southwest of the Cameron Peak Fire, has destroyed about 301 square miles and is 20 percent contained.