Homes Left Standing After Marshall Fire Suffer Smoke Damage
LOUISVILLE, Colo. (CBS4)- Among the 991 homes destroyed in the Marshall Fire, there are others still standing. Most of those have been filled with smoke from the fire.
"It raced along the street here, along with the grass fire there and came up."
The blaze came close to Kevin Van Liere's house. The flames did not enter, but the smoke did.
"In every window, every crevice you can see where the ash came in," he said.
Some 991 homes have been destroyed, but the smoke damage to others may be uncountable. That's where companies like Integrity Environmental come in to assess that damage.
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Frank Rudy heads the firm, "We roll this back and forth waving the wand in what we call the breeze zone from head to toe."
It measures the particulates in the air. Results are fed into a computer available sometimes within minutes.
"In this particular case you got that fresh air this home is pulling in from that burnt pile of ash next door," said Rudy.
If the smoke damage is so bad it may not be possible to live there until it is thoroughly cleaned by restoration companies. In severe cases, walls may have to be replaced.
Van Liere is assessing his home.
"Even though the AC was turned off, even though the windows were closed, it still was that thick inside and there was no way for the smoke to get in."
But it did.