If that is true Jerry, and the facts could be established with firm evidence, the lawsuit against the D&S would surely be severely weakened?
Property owners, the D&S and local businesses in Durango and Silverton could potentially sue the USFS for damages. And, it must be questioned why the USFS allowed such a fuel load to build-up on their land prior to the fire. If they had managed the forest properly, such as by removing dead trees, either standing or those brought down by avalanches, then the fire may not have been as severe. This draws parallels with earlier USFS and NPS policy, which was to put all fires out, allowing a large fuel load to build-up on the forest floor over many years. One result, in 1988, was the disastrous forest fires in Yellowstone National Park, which destroyed huge areas of forest and nearly took out the Old Faithful Inn. Other, more recent big fires in the Sierra Nevada, California, may have had a similar cause.
It's tempting to think that if the USFS's screw-ups over the 2016 fire came-out, they would be in severe trouble in the Durango area, both financially and in terms of their reputation. Heads would surely have to roll among their management to save face. The memory of the forced shut-down of the C&TS due to fire-risk, as mentioned elsewhere in this thread, may then come back to haunt them as well.