Colorado Springs, Colorado (CBS) Officials let some residents in Colorado Springs get a brief trip back into their neighborhoods to see what's left of their homes.

Thousands of people living in some of the hardest hit areas of the Waldo Canyon Fire lined up early at checkpoints Sunday.

These residents of Mountain Shadows got a chance to see their property for the first time since the raging wildfires drove them out a week ago.

For some, their homes are still standing, but for others, they returned to see the charred remains of where they once lived.

"I'll get in the back seat"

Red cross mental health counselors were with them.

Danielle Stoppel, a psychologist says, "what we do is listen, give them reassurances, but some of the things that they tell you are things that they need to repeat over and over again and that is part of the healing process that they can talk to someone.

Some evacuees remain in shelters, sleeping on cots.

Tanya Rose has been here for eight nights.


Rose adds, "I've had a couple of crabby days but they've passed"

The Waldo Canyon Fire has scorched more than 17–thousand acres.
About 15–hundred firefighters continue to work day and night to bring it under control. Their efforts have not gone unnoticed.

Every day the locals cheer on the firefighters as they head up into the mountains to battle the blazes

"Grateful, so grateful, I can't even imagine how hard they are working and how tired they must be."

Even though firefighters are gaining ground – their battle could go through the month.