FORT COLLINS - The insurance industry has hit the ground at evacuation centers as the High Park Fire continued to burn Monday in the mountains west of Fort Collins.

Insurance industry employees already have begun helping Larimer County residents prepare claims, said Carole Walker, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association. Once authorities lift evacuation orders, more insurance adjusters will move into the area.

"Once people are allowed back in to the areas where their homes have been lost, the next person they're going to want to talk to is their insurance adjuster," Walker said.

The fire has burned an estimated 58,000 acres, and firefighters have achieved 45 percent containment. More than 1,700 people are working around the clock to battle the blaze.

The cost to fight the fire is so far estimated at $12.6 million. Authorities have confirmed that the inferno wiped out 181 homes, and they said Monday that they believe at least three other homes were lost.
Authorities will begin to confirming Tuesday what buildings, homes and properties have burned, County Assessor Steve Miller said.
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