cnn's jim spellman is in the fire zone and talking to evacuees. jim. >> reporter: hey, candy.ing those photos that chad was talking about and seeing this fire firsthand, the people that are now in today's new evacuation zones are wasting no time getting out. take a look. after a brutal night of out of control wildfire in colorado springs, tough choices for families forced to evacuate. was it difficult to decide what to bring and what to leave behind? >> oh, yes. you want to take everything. but you know you can't. >> reporter: stan and darlene are one of the last families in the evacuation zone to leave their home. they waited hoping the fire would subside, but after watching the flames from their back porch, they knew it was time to go. normally this would be a pretty great view, but all i can see now is smoke. >> that's all we can see today. it's pretty disheartening. >> reporter: they can only bring what will fit into the back of this pickup truck and this jeep. >> as soon as we close the hood we're going to roll out of here. >> reporter: not everything fits into the colber

jim spellman met one family who learnnd their home was destroyed after they saw it on a newspaper cover3 --reporter pkg-as ollows -- assthe flames tore through his coloradd prings neighborhood..major ted stefani, an army surgeon, knew "looked up at the mountain and saw flames shooting ver the top of the mountain." with only minutes to spare, hee ppcked up his car aad raced out of the neighborhood, meeting his wife kate and soo calee at a friend'' house. then he wait began. would 3 answer came the next mooning when thee saw this picture on tte denver post website...their neighborhood & in flames, their hoose on the - left...a onfire. ted: "when &pwe saw the ppotographh initially, it was just kind of phock." kate: "that's our - houseeand it's in flames and i -3 juss started cryinn...there was no way around it. i was never going to go home agaan...so...ittwas pretty sad." the photo went viral, also published on cnn-dot-com 3 times. more photos can be seen at denver post dot com. ted: "it was just total shock to see our house ppetty much in a &pfiieball, ut i think thaa was also therapeutic

cnn's jim spellman is live in colorado springs.as counting five fires this morning, but somebody told me it's seven fires burning. is that right? >> reporter: seven active fires here in colorado and more in new mexico. it's been such an intense year for fires out here in the west and we're only in the middle of june. they got good news here on this fire outside of colorado springs yesterday. 5% containment. they were able to create a small amount of fire line to get the first toe hold against this fire. the bad news is they expect this fire could potentially double in size and could be three weeks before they have it fully contained. today they are going to be out there again trying to get more containment. they expect red flag warning conditions again today. that means high winds, high temperature, and low humidity. that's what make s it so hard for these firefighters to advance on the fire and what makes the potential for more fires to break out. yesterday several small fires broke out but were able to knock those down. but these

jim spellman is "outfront" tonight in colorado springs. the latest that you can see tonight? >> we just got word from fire officials here the containment is now 25%. that's really good news here. they've taken advantage of a little bit a break in the weather. it's still hot here but not as hot as it was a couple of days ago and the winds are much lower. they are still going at this full force from the air, with helicopters and on the ground with ground crews up there in the middle of this fire trying to create fire lines and make sure no more homes were destroyed. last night, residents who lived in the area that was destroyed got word of that firsthand from the mayor here. as people were starting to find out, starting to really sink in. i caught up with a woman today named susan. she's raising her four grand kids after her daughter died. and their home is now destroyed. her four grandsons and susan are now homeless. trying to figure out what they're going to do next. take a listen. >> we could see in our rearview mirrors the side of the hil

. >>> tonight, jim spellman is outfront in colorado springs. >> reporter: in additionally, storms thatight and again this evening they have the potential to blow one way and then suddenly another direction and embers blowing from the fire can start new fires. everything can get out of hand quickly. they are hoping that doesn't happen again tonight we've entered the period of time when that's a distinct possibility. >> tell me what you know about this fbi investigation. is this something they would do in any case or is it your understanding they have something specific to lead them to think that perhaps arson was involved? >> reporter: it's pretty unusual. i was in contact with the fbi in denver when they told me they're down here to work and bring their resources to bear on it. obviously they have a lot more capabilities to do criminal investigations when all the local agencies here are so wrapped up with the on going emergency here. they still haven't been able to pinpoint the cause of this. they know there wasn't lightning. they fear maybe there was potential for some sort of arson.

i want to go straight to jim spellman in colorado springs. talk to me about what you've seen today. we have talked to someone that has lost everything. it's horrendous. >> reporter: it really is. they made a lot of progress. only 15% contained. this is the third good day in a row where they have been able to get in there and make progress against the fire. it's also allowed them to do assessments through the neighborhoods and figure out which homes have been lost. that's what led to the search that discovered the deceased person yesterday and they will still look for the missing person associated with that same address. last night people in the affected area were invited to come out. tomorrow some of these people will g able to go in just on a bus. they're not going to be able to get out of the bus. i spoke to a woman today. four of her grand children, she takes care of because their mother and father died separately about year and a half ago and now her home has been destroyed. this grandmother taking care of four grand kids. they have to rebuild from scratch. every person shows so

kyra. >> jim spellman.s so much. >>> and help to finding a survivor under the rubble of a canadian shopping mall is fading. the roof collapsed saturday and rescuers now using a 90-ton mcarm to try to pull away concrete slabs. they suspended the efforts over years that the structure could crumble more. one person is feared dead. at least one more is believed missing. well today, there's a new new york state. one that's working to attract businesses and create jobs. a place where innovation meets determination... and businesses lead the world. the new new york works for business. find out how it can work for yours at thenewny.com. i tell mike what i can spend. i do my best to make that work. we're driving safely. and sue saved money on brakes. now that's personal pricing. >>> well, it's starting to feel like olympic season in london. the five iconic rings were lowered from the top of the tower bridge today giving spectators a view from along the thames river. the rings mark the official one-month countdown to

jim spellman, cnn, colorado springs. >>> also this morning, army investigators are trying to find outa soldier started shooting people in a safety briefing at fort bragg. people near the base are having a hard time making sense of it all. >> it's really a sad situation because the soldiers are really here to help us. why would someone do something like that. so maybe they need evaluations or something is going on, but it's really sad. >> pentagon correspondent barbara starr joins us. this isn't the first time. the shooting turned the gun on himself. >> hi, carol, yeah. it is a tough situation at fort bragg. army investigators are on scene, trying to figure out what exactly happened yesterday when soldiers gathered for that formation and one soldier opened fire, shooting and killing one fellow soldier, wounding another at this formation, then indeed turning the weapon on himself. he is said to be wounded and being treated for that. very little information being given by the army at this point. they say they just don't have it right now. they are not identifying the victim in this shoot

cnn's jim spellman has one family's story. >> reporter: as flames tore through his neighborhood, major get out. >> looked at the mountain, saw flames shooting over top of the mountain. >> reporter: with minutes to spare, he packed the car, raced out to a friend's house to meet his wife and son. then the wait began. would the house be spared. the answer came in the morning when they saw this picture on the denver post website. their house on the left, a bonfire. >> when we saw the photograph initially, it was shock. >> that's our house and it's in flames, and i just started crying. there was no way around it, i was never going to go home again, so it's pretty sad. >> reporter: the photo went viral, also published on cnn.com and "the new york times." more photos can be seen at denverpost.com. >> it was total shock to see your house in a fireball. we knew from the get go we lost the house. >> we got these boxes, top boxes from iraq and afghanistan. >> reporter: while managing to escape with books an important documents, there were many precious items left behind. ted's medals from iraq an

jim spellman explains. >> reporter: for fire victim susan and her grandsons, their pain and heart breakegan long before the flames hit their neighborhood. in the fall of 2010, susan's daughter, kim, the boy's mom died in her sleep. three months later, their father died after a heart attack. >> i spent a couple months packing them up and moving them here. sorry. >> reporter: she had four grieving grandsons to take care of. >> it kind of feels like sadness. >> i just miss them so much. >> most of the time, i think why me? but, that's pretty much normal because people that go through that think why me? why does this happen to me? >> reporter: do you ever get an answer to that question? >> no, not really. >> reporter: they managed as best thekds. >> it's been a struggle. been in counseling. we have gone up and down. everyone is doing much better. >> reporter: then the fire came, forcing them to pack up the few things they could and head for safety. >> as we drove, we could see the side of the hill exploded. there had to be 40 fires just bam. >> reporter: grandma's house was destroyed. the b

first though he want to go to cnn's jim spellman on the front lines with the firefighters who is battlingm. >> reporter: hi, soledad. yeah, this fire has really amped up in the last just couple of hours. a fire official told me less than an hour ago if he told me an acreage amount, it would be wrong in ten minutes. this fire is advancing at least at 2,000 feet every hour. the last four days this has been burning, they counted on the wind to at least burn it in towards the interior of the forest and away from populated areas. just within the last half hour, that has completely changed. the smoke is now coming towards us, towards the city of colorado springs.

>> jim spellman in colorado springs.rations are back on this morning at the scene of a shopping mall roof collapse in elliott lake, ontario. at least two people were trapped. canadian emergency officials believe that one victim my have died but another could still be alive under the rubble. >>> hundreds of fbi agents teaming up with local police officers for operation cross country. during the raids, 79 kids being held as sex slaves were rescued from 57 different cities. officials say truck stops, casinos, and the internet are hubs for this kind of criminal activity. >>> george zimmerman's attorney says his client accepts full responsibility for misleading a judge about his finances at his original bond hearing. zimmerman's bond was revoked as a result. he's in jail pending a new bond hearing on friday. zimmerman is charged with murdering florida teenager trayvon martin. >>> commander in chief and proud white sox fan barack obama booed in boston after he thanked fans for the newest addition to his team. >> thank you for

we want to go to cnn's jim spellman on the front lines with firefighters right near pike's peak. hey, jim. >> reporter: hi, soledad. yeah, this fire has really amped up in the last just couple of hours. a fire official told me less than an hour ago if he told me an acreage amount, it would be wrong in ten minutes. it's advancing 10,000 feet every hour. the last four days this has been burning, they counted on the wind to at least burn it in towards the interior of the forest and away from populated areas. just within the last half hour, that has completely changed. the smoke is now coming towards us, towards the city of colorado springs. now, it doesn't seem at this moment there's any real danger to the city itself. but so far as of a couple hours ago, they miraculously i think not lost a single structure. i was in the interior of this fire and they had fire lines around individual houses and every single one them had held. this is going to make it a lot more difficult with this change in the wind direction. that's what prompted that additional evacuation of 7,000 people, soledad.

cnn's jim spellman explains. >> reporter: for fire victim susan solage and grandsons justin, connor,in and heartbreak began long before the flames hit their neighborhood. in the fall of 2010, susan's daughter, kim, the boys' mom, died in her sleep. then just three months later, the boys' father, nolan, died after a heart attack. >> it spent a couple months hiking them up, prepping up their lives. i moved them here. >> reporter: susan now had four grieving grandsons to take care of. >> it kind of feels like sadness in my heart. >> most of the time, i think why me? but that's pretty much normal, because like, people that go through that think, because like, why me? why does this happen to me? >> reporter: do you ever get an answer to that question? >> no, not really. >> reporter: they managed as best they could. >> it's been a struggle. we've been in some counseling. we've gone up and down. but everyone's doing much better. >> reporter: and then the fire came, forcing them to pack up what few things they could and head for safety. >> and as we drove, we could see in our rearview mirror

we want to go to cnn's jim spellman on the front lines with firefighters right near pike's peak. , soledad. yeah, this fire has really amped up in the last just couple of hours. a fire official told me less than an hour ago if he told me an acreage amount, it would be wrong in ten minutes. it's advancing 10,000 feet every hour. the last four days this has been burning, they counted on the wind to at least burn it in towards the interior of the forest and away from populated areas. just within the last half hour, that has completely chd.

first, jim spellman joins us from colorado springs with one of those personal stories. jim. >> reporter: hey, candy. yeah, you know, as firefighters have been able to get into these neighborhoods and assess the damage, people here are starting to find out the fate of their homes. for a lot of people, it's bad news behind each one of those hopes is a tragic story. here's one. take a look. for fire victim susan and her grandsons, justin, connor, brandon and tyler, their pain and heartbreak began long before the flames hit their neighborhood. in the fall of 2010, susan's daughter, kim, the boys' mom, died in her sleep. then, just three months later the boy's father, nolan, died after a heart attack. >> i spent a couple months packing them up. wrapping up their lives. and moved them here. sorry. >> reporter: susan now had four grieving grandsons to take care of. >> it kind of feels like sadness in my heart. >> i just miss them so much. >> most of the time i think, why me? but that's pretty much normal because like people that go through that think, why me, why does this happ

cnn's jim spellman is near the lines of the blaze in colorado springs. >> look at this.orking hard from the sky and the ground to make sure that stays the case. this is the edge of the fire nearest the city. they're dropping retardant from planes and using helicopters to drop water on it. try to keep all of the homes safe, they've only got 5% containment. and really difficult operating conditions here. high temperatures, high winds, low humidity are making the fire incredibly active here during the afternoon and incredibly difficult for firefighters to try to get the upper hand on. we've called in more crews and more equipment they say can take up to three weeks before they have the fire fully contained. jim spellman, cnn, colorado springs. >>> tension between syria and turkey just keep ratcheting higher. could it lead to another conflict in a region already reeling from bloodshed? plus, a powerful u.s. congressman and republican fundraiser is being accused of a money laundering scheme and cover-up. now, the key witness against him is speaking out in an exclusive intervi

jim spellman, thanks very much. >>> that's it for me. thanks very much for joining us.er in washington. follow me on twitter@wolfblitzer. twitter@wolfblitzer. the news continues next on cnn. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> divided supreme court and the rally cry. we will breakdown the changes you face as that law is fully implemented. >>> history in the house, vote to hold the attorney general in contempt of congress. republicans say eric holder is stonewalling a critical investigation. he calls it an election year stunt. >>> and full circle, going back to day one, a voice worth rehearing this important day. >>> let's begin with the dramatic developments on capitol hill, the house of representatives voted to cite attorney general eric holder for contempt of congress. >> the resolution is agreed to. >> hear that low nay count, 67. 100 democratic lawmakers walked out as voting started, among them, minority leader nancy pelosi. she called that contempt vote heinous. >> just when you think you have seen it all, just when you think they couldn't possibly go any fur

. >> reporter: i'm p jim spellman in colorado springs where a wildfire has forced many to evacuate. >m allison kosik at the new york stock exchange. home prices made a nice bounce in april. i'll tell you which cities got the biggest increases. >>> a man is picked up outside of a bar in downtown raleigh, north carolina. he says he was kicked ow because he was african-american. the owners dispute that claim. et but centurylink is committed to being a different kind of communications company by continuing to help you do more and focus on the things that matter to you. well hello, welcome to hotels.com. summer road trip, huh? uhuh yep uch let's find you a room. at hotels.com, you'll always find the perfect hotel. because we only do hotels. wow. i like that. nice no. laugh... awe uch ooh, yeah hmm nice huh book it! oh boy call me... this summer, we're finding you the perfect place - plus giving you up to $100 at hotels.com with scottrader streaming quotes, any way you want. fully customize it for your trading process -- from thought to trade, on every screen. and all in real time. which ma

jim spellman is there, he's actually near the waldo canyon fire, are these guy going to get any relief any time soon? >> reporter: boy, at the very minimum, a few days. another red flag warning day, that means high winds, low humidity and we're starting to see a little more activity. this particular fire near colorado springs has burned and they still only have 5% containment. this fire could go on for another three weeks and it could double in size. >> the air force academy is there, right? is that being threatened at all? >> reporter: not at the moment, but that's one of their big concerns, it's to the north and that's the way the winds are blowing. they're building lines to keep it from getting up there, and before you get to the air force academy, is a huge stand of timber that could go up like that with these kind of conditions. that's one of the main things they want to try to protect. >> james spellman, thanks. currently 24 fires across the country have burned more than 561,000 acres. of all the times that i have been live in iraq, what went through your mind? >> this is the geo

. >> jim spellman reporting live in florida. >>> in florida, a different story, torrential rains areoff. debby is now a tropical depression. but it dumped nearly 2 feet of rain. leaving entire towns in knee-deep water. george howell is in the florida panhandle. >> it's your own place, of course, that's a little different. >> reporter: dodging power lines and low-hanging branches, we took a boat ride with larry and crystal pezek, as it took them through what used to be their neighborhood. >> this is the road that leads to our lane. >> i just can't believe the current in here -- the current is ripping. >> reporter: after passing several homes. >> down here on the left somewhere, i don't recognize anything now. >> reporter: the reality of what's left became painful apparent. >> that's our house there. >> reporter: the peseks evacuated but crews had to rescue dozens from their homes. >> the amount of rain we had, the water level came up so fast, some of the folks didn't have time to pack their things. >> reporter: across, people are returning to their homes to find out what if anything i

cnn's jim spellman is standing by in colorado, and cnn's john za re zarrella is in florida.pert chad myers with a new storm advisory from the national hurricane center. chad. >> joe, the very latest is the 5:00 advisory. we get new advisories every six hours when there's a storm or watch warning on the shore for the united states, the advisories come out every three hours. 45 miles per hour. the storm did not slow down. it will travel across the northern part of the state maybe right over jacksonville itself. the five inch an hour rainfall total is right there on the northern fringe of debby. it's up here to the west of jacksonville, but very close to this the city of tallahassee. we've seen some spots now with 16 inches of rain today. the pictures are impossible to get because the roads are closed. the big red box is a tornado watch box. they'll make damage, like some of the damage that we had from last night. >> we're hearing just incredible things about the storm. thanks so much for that. i want to talk to you about anecdotes. man man says it was so windy and rainy he cou