Shocking images of the Colorado wildfires with as many as 1,000 homes destroyed

Whole communities have been left devastated

The fires that swept through Colorado on Thursday left tens of thousands of people displaced with no idea whether their homes were still standing.

Officials have called the inferno the most devastating fire in state history, with 6,000 acres burned and between 600 and 1,000 homes destroyed.

Authorities on Friday pleaded with the public to refrain from attempts to return to their neighbourhoods until they were deemed safe, as pockets of fire remain.

A hotel and shopping centre were among the structures lost, but two local hospitals were saved.

Several fires broke out on Thursday, believed to have been sparked by downed power lines and all fuelled by unusually dry conditions and high winds, which were gusting up to 105 mph (169 kph).

Colorado was one of the states hit by an unprecedented drought over the summer, and the Boulder area has received nowhere near its usual rainfall and snow, leading to tinder dry conditions allowing the fire to burn out of control.

The town of Louisville’s 21,000 residents were all ordered to evacuate, as were the 12,000 people living in nearby Superior.

Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle held a joint press conference Friday with Colorado Governor Jared Polis, who said the devastation had unfolded in “the blink of an eye”.

Here are some of the most striking images captured on Thursday.

The town of Superior was hurriedly evacuated as fires raged out of control (AFP via Getty Images)

Fires burning in Superior are seen from a plane flying from Denver, Colorado (Joe Harrison via REUTERS)

A home burns after as the fast moving wildfire swept through Louisville, Colorado (Getty Images)

Homes burn as a wildfire rips through a development near Broomfield, Colorado (AP)

State officials estimated some 600 homes were lost in multiple areas around Boulder County, though that number could be as high as 1,000 (Getty Images)

Structures burn as a wind-driven wildfire forced evacuation of the Superior suburb of Boulder, Colorado (via REUTERS)

A charred vehicle sits amid the remains of homes burned by the wildfires after they ripped through a housing development (AP)

In some areas the fire stopped abruptly leaving one house untouched and the neighbouring property destroyed (AP)

Frank, Deb, and Christian Harrison react to the the damage of their home in The Enclave after the wildfire in Louisville, Colorado (via REUTERS)