Excuse for forest fire doesn't make sense

Terry Barton's story about how an out-of-control campfire led to one of the biggest out-of-control forest fires in U.S. history never rang true. And even her follow-up explanation -- being called a confession by prosecutors -- sounds hollow.

Barton is the 18-year U.S. Forest Service employee who now faces charges for starting the fire that destroyed dozens of houses, forced thousands of Colorado residents to evacuate and burned more than 100,000 acres of forest.

She first said she found an untended campfire that had escaped from a campground fire ring. But a prolonged forensic investigation led authorities to believe otherwise. When presented with those doubts, Barton changed her story and said she burned a letter in the fire ring and accidentally caused the fire.

Given the circumstances and the fact that a Forest Service employee -- more than anyone else -- knows about fire dangers, the explanation fails to satisfy even casual observers.

The huge Colorado fire is just one of several fires, mostly in the West. But other forest blazes are being fought in the southeastern United States too. An extended dry spell is blamed in both areas of fires.

Meanwhile, hundreds of firefighters are risking their lives -- some have already been killed -- to put a stop to what may be an unstoppable inferno until there are heavy rains.