Homes are burned in the Marshall Fire in the Rock Creek neighborhood of Superior, as seen on Dec. 31, 2021. (Courtesy of Bill Wright)
On the morning of Dec. 30, 2021, a low-pressure zone developed just east of the mountains of Boulder, causing unusually high winds. On its own, the winds might have been a mere inconvenience, but the tinderbox environment they encountered created combustible conditions.
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Heavy precipitation in the early part of the year was followed by extreme heat and dryness, creating abundant fine fuels. The Front Range in the seven months leading up to Dec. 30 had endured the warmest such period on record. Boulder County was experiencing extreme drought…