They Thought They'd Die Trapped In a Parking Lot. How 150 Survivors of California's Deadliest Fire..

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They Thought They'd Die Trapped In a Parking Lot. How 150 Survivors of California's Deadliest Fire Made It Out Alive
By Rong-Gong Lin II and Maria L. La Ganga/ LA Now/ Local/ Los Angeles Times/ latimes.com

"It was the best bad place.

To the south was a gun shop called Fins, Fur & Feather Sports, stocked with live ammunition. To the northeast, a propane yard. Across the street, a Fastrip gas station. All around, soaring, drought-crisp pines.

And in the center? About 150 terrified people who had fled the ferocious Camp fire only to be stopped at the intersection of Skyway and Clark Road, forced to sit out the deadliest conflagration in California history.

In a parking lot. Surrounded by fuel. Barred from escape by roaring flames and roads that were choked, first with traffic, then abandoned vehicles, and, finally, with burned-out hulks of charred metal...."

A firefighter takes cover in Paradise, Calif., as high winds whip embers from the Camp fire, which erupted Nov. 8 and claimed 88 lives. (Peter Dasilva / EPA/Shutterstock)


Richard

 

[Luanne]

This sounds like where one of my best friend's friends were trapped. My friend, and her daughter, got out of Paradise safely, but not without drama. They were driving down roads where flames were crossing. The city sign was already in flames as they passed it. A drive (to Chico) which would have normally taken 20 minutes took them 4 1/2 hours.

Her friends, who lived farther north and closer to where the fire started had first planned to come to my friend's house. They made it as far as a parking lot, where they sheltered in place with others surrounded by fire trucks.

Both of these families, and many, many others lost their homes. Lost everything.

 

[pedro47]

These 150 peoples were in the care of God IMHO.

 

[Passepartout]

This was an AMAZING account of a heartbreaking and terrorizing time and place. Those were some VERY fortunate people. And the firemen's skill was amazing, too.

 

[clifffaith]

I read the story in yesterday's newspaper. Had to wipe my eyes several times. I can't even imagine being in such a predicament.

 

[taffy19]

This sounds like where one of my best friend's friends were trapped. My friend, and her daughter, got out of Paradise safely, but not without drama. They were driving down roads where flames were crossing. The city sign was already in flames as they passed it. A drive (to Chico) which would have normally taken 20 minutes took them 4 1/2 hours.

Her friends, who lived farther north and closer to where the fire started had first planned to come to my friend's house. They made it as far as a parking lot, where they sheltered in place with others surrounded by fire trucks.

Both of these families, and many, many others lost their homes. Lost everything.

Luanne, I am so glad that your friends came out alive from this horrible fire but really sorry for them that they lost their home and everything.

 

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Dog That Survived California Wildfire Guarded Home For Weeks
By Daisy Nguyen/ Associated Press/ Disasters/ US/ Fox News/ foxnews.com

"SAN FRANCISCO – A dog that survived the catastrophic wildfire in Northern California apparently protected the ruins of his home for almost a month until his owner returned.

Madison was there waiting when Andrea Gaylord was allowed back to check on her burned property in Paradise this week.

Gaylord fled when the Nov. 8 fire broke out and decimated the town of 27,000. An animal rescuer who responded to Gaylord's request to check on Madison first spotted the male Anatolian shepherd mix several days later.

Shayla Sullivan said the outdoor guard dog was apprehensive and kept his distance. Sullivan left food and water for him regularly until Gaylord got back on Wednesday. She also helped locate Madison's brother Miguel, another Anatolian shepherd mix that was taken to a shelter 85 miles (135 kilometers) away in the confusing aftermath of the wildfire.

"If (the evacuees) can't be there I'm going to be and I'm not going to give up on their animal until they can get back in," Sullivan said...."

This Friday Dec. 7, 2018 photo provided Shayla Sullivan shows "Madison," the Anatolian shepherd dog that apparently guarded his burned home for nearly a month until his owner returned in Paradise, Calif. Sullivan, an animal rescuer, left food and water for Madison during his wait. (Shayla Sullivan via AP)


Richard

 

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In a Town of Unanswered Questions, Paradise Tries to Imagine its Future
By Thomas Curwen/ California/ Local/ Los Angeles Times/ latimes.com

"Rain was falling as evacuees returned to their beloved town in the Sierra Nevada foothills. Traffic slowed as drivers beheld the devastation.

Five weeks earlier, an inferno swept through these wooded neighborhoods, exacting a terrible toll. Of the 86 people killed in the Camp fire, most lived here. Of the nearly 14,000 homes burned, 12,000 were here. Ninety percent of the town was lost, officials say.

Block after block, homes sit crumbled atop foundations and footings, ashy-white landmarks in a landscape of charred trees and soot-blackened soil.

The business districts fared no better, a grim catalog of destruction: restaurants collapsed around tables and chairs, a supermarket reduced to shelving and rubble, a liquor store with rows of shattered fifths, an antique mart where the face of a porcelain doll stares at the open sky.

Residents and business owners say they will return and rebuild — Paradise Strong — and an army of utility workers has already swept through the city, felling trees, raising power poles, and stringing utilities.

But the first reflex in the face of catastrophe is easy: hard work and resolve, as much a part of the American character as the impulse to raise a flag over the most unrecognizable ruins.

But what comes next?

Paradise wonders. It is a city of many unanswered questions, not the least of which is how the future can be imagined when the past and present have been so thoroughly erased....."

Just a few small items remain of the Christmas decorations that Anne Wycoff had in her home in Paradise, which was destroyed by the Camp fire. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)


Richard