'It was raining fire': Fire engulfs Boulder condos early Tuesday morning

Oct. 19—When Josiah Lucero woke early Tuesday morning to go to the bathroom, he heard what sounded like people stumbling above his condo. He thought it was neighbors having a party, so he ignored the noise.

"I went back to bed, but shortly after that, right when I was about to put my head down, (fiance Elif Kuzu) comes in and was like 'There's a fire.' I was like 'What? I knew I smelled something.'"

Josiah Lucero and Elif Kuzu live in an end unit at the Whittier Apartments in Boulder. The condos were were engulfed in flames early Tuesday, leaving them without a place to live. The couple attended a Boulder Police Department news conference Tuesday afternoon in hopes of hearing when or if they will be able to retrieve their belongings from the unit.

Spokesperson Dionne Waugh said all 81 units in the complex were impacted in the fire, correcting earlier reports that stated 83 units were impacted.

While Waugh said no injuries had been reported, a late Tuesday news release from her stated officials were still trying to contact three condo owners "to verify occupancy."

Boulder Fire Chief Michael Calderazzo said during a Boulder City Council meeting Tuesday evening he is not certain whether the owners were in the units at the time of the fire. Calderazzo previously told council members that four condo owners were still missing but Waugh updated the number to three in the release. The release also noted that some of the units were short- or long-term rentals and some were vacant.

Waugh said police are still working to locate the missing residents. She asked any resident who has not already been in contact with police to call Detective Sharon Ramos at 303-441-3323.

Earlier Tuesday, while cramming computers and cords into their backpacks to evacuate their home, Lucero looked out his unit's front door and saw the fire just two doors away. It was swiftly moving toward his unit.

"I opened the door and right after I opened the door, there's this massive fireball," Lucero said. "I could feel the heat, and I could feel the embers falling on me. It was raining fire."

First responders were dispatched to the scene about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, Waugh said. The fire was mostly under control by about 5:40 a.m.

There are still hot spots and fires are still reigniting at the condos, Waugh said. To secure the area, police officers and firefighters will remain at the scene through Wednesday and the roadways between Pearl, Folsom and 23rd streets will remain closed for at least another day.

First responders have not been able to go into the units to look for anyone or any pets because of the ongoing hot spots and buildings that have started to collapse, Waugh said. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but Calderazzo told City Council that the fire got above the sprinklers and burned through the roof line. It traveled internally along the breezeway and caught all the structures on fire.

"It was an incredibly intense fire," Waugh said. "It was throughout several of these structures. We had multiple structures, multiple floors and so just getting that out initially was probably the biggest challenge, and right now it's trying to get all of the hotspots out and continue onto the next phase to search for exactly what happened here today."

Boulder resident Travis Starling was driving home from Denver at about 3:45 a.m. and said that he could see the fire from Superior coming in on U.S. 36.

"(I) just kept driving into Boulder and realized the fire was two blocks from where I live," Starling said.

Starling said by the time he arrived, the building had been evacuated and a small crowd had gathered as the flames lit up the sky.

"It seemed like (the fire department) had things pretty well under control, as in people were out and they were just working to extinguish the blaze," Starling said.

The Red Cross was on scene to help displaced residents. People can contact the local Red Cross chapter at 844-221-4160 to find out how they can support residents who were displaced from the fire.

Residents who were displaced can call the Red Cross at 855-891-7325. Any people who were in the area at the time of the fire who have not yet spoken with police also are asked to call Ramos, the Boulder detective, at 303-441-3323.