More than 600 right-of-entry forms have been submitted so far by residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed by the Palisades or Eaton fire — allowing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to enter those properties and clean up fire-related debris, authorities said on Wednesday.

County officials launched the program a day earlier.

Debris cleanup will take place in two phases: The Environmental Protection Agency is leading an effort to clean out all household hazardous waste, and the second phase will be fire-related debris removal, such as for ash and other toxic materials.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger said the initial assessments have been completed for Phase 1 so debris removal will begin next week. When a property is declared clear by the EPA, it can enter Phase 2, which like the first is free but requires owners to opt in by filling out that right-of-entry form.

“We are still early in a long road of recovery, but when I speak with our residents who have lost everything, their spirit fills me with hope that we can see this through,” Barger said. “To impacted residents across our county, know that we see you, hear you and I can speak for the entire board: We stand with you. We will not stop working until we get you back into your homes.”

The forms can be found at recovery.lacounty.gov or at one of the three disaster-recovery centers: UCLA Research Park West, the Pasadena City College Community Education Center, and the Altadena Disaster Recovery Center. Those forms must be submitted by March 31, said Mark Pastrella, the Los Angeles County Public Works director.

The original time frame for the first phase was two months, but Gov. Gavin Newsom is pushing for just a month.

Col. Eric Swinson of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said completion of the second phase could take a year or less.

Those who choose not to opt in for the second phase can hire a private contractor for debris removal, officials said.

As of Wednesday, the Eaton fire, which has burned 14,021 acres and damaged or destroyed more than 10,000 structures in Altadena, Pasadena and Sierra Madre, was 99% contained, according to Cal Fire. The Palisades fire, which has burned 23,448 acres and damaged or destroyed more than 7,000 structures in Pacific Palisades and Malibu, was 96% contained.

The fires have claimed at least 29 lives, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office. The fires’ causes are under investigation, Sheriff Robert Luna said.