Join  |  Login  |   Cart    

Notary Rotary
Notary WorkJust Politics
Discussion involving leisure activities: books, travel, hobbies, sports, Internet fun and more. Please read Msg #1 before posting.


Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account
Posted by Bear900/CA of CA on 11/19/18 11:11pmMsg #30692
This is from a regular poster in a closed forum

"Dear wonderful friends: Life without a home has been rugged. I am thrilled to know how many of you have responded to my plight. We are currently housed in a hotel in Redding (hotels from here to Sacramento are filled with Camp refugees). This hotel, which is pet friendly, is filled to capacity with displaced folks from what used to be called the town with the beautiful trees. Marty, myself and our dog, Jojo, are existing in a small hotel room with a microwave and mini fridge. Until today, Internet and WiFi has been sketchy at best. We received some texts via our phone but not others. Most of our outgoing messages were never sent. I think the overload of people here stretched the limits of broadband coverage.

Here’s our story: It was 8am Thursday morning and as was our usual protocol, Marty took the dog for his walk. It was then he saw neighbors packing their cars to leave town. It was like that scene in “Independence Day” where people are throwing their belongings into cars in a frantic rush to leave and the main character hasn’t a clue as to why. Like the movie, it was the neighbors who alerted him the fire was near.

We began packing immediately and were ready to go by 10:30am. But, unknown to us, it was already too late. We packed the cat, the dog, important papers and necessities into the car and headed toward Skyway to exit town. The roads were jammed with vehicles making little progress. We were inching along Bille Road (just blocks from our house) when fire fighters came running yelling for us to abandon our cars and run for our lives, “The fire is surrounding us on all sides.”

I grabbed my purse, Marty took the animals and we headed to the Walgreens at the top of the hill as instructed. A hundred or so of us huddled in the dark aisles of Walgreens with its emergency bells ringing and intruder warning lights flashing. The mostly elderly escapees roamed the front of the store with their animals and what little belongings they were able to carry, wondering what would be next.

The official plan was for us to gather in the back of the store and wait while the fire rolled over us—a plan I believed would mean certain death. Officials must have thought so too. Twenty minutes later school busses arrived to haul our band of disconnected misfits into the town of Chico at the bottom of the hill. It took four hours for us to make the 15-minute journey. Homes, businesses, trees, electrical wires and utility poles were burning on both sides of the freeway. All lanes headed in one direction—out of Paradise. It was uncanny to see fires raging with an internal life of its own—burning with what seemed to be a fierce determination and direction but without cause or reason. The fire was doing its job with the efficiency of a well-planned agenda and doing it without a conscience.

We misfits, following orders like lost sheep, road quietly crammed into seats designed for 10-year olds; squeezed shoulder to shoulder and all knees pointed toward the aisle. Dogs and cats were unsettled and cramped along with us restrained only by a leash and the unrelenting restraint of their owners.

The bus dropped some off at the Fairgrounds and the rest of us journeyed another hour to the LDS church on East Avenue just 10 minutes away. We were dropped off in the parking lot. We took a seat on the curb and listened as we were told we could not stay there. There was water to drink, but no place to rest or time to consider our plight.

Marty and I were lucky. A friend who lived nearby text us to say his house was open to us and he would retrieve us. Meanwhile, our cat escaped the makeshift crate we constructed with two hand baskets from the Walgreens store and darted into the surrounding bushes. We consoled ourselves knowing he, at least, was safe from the fire.

The next few days were filled with calls to insurance companies and other institutions of which we now relied. We spent two days with our wonderful friends even supplying us with necessities like a toothbrush. Saturday our church opened up and we were able to get most of the necessities we needed. Three of our church facilities burned in the fire. The Chico church took on the responsibility to see that everyone was feed, had food supplies to take with them and clothing if needed. Our homeowner’s insurance worked quickly to find us long-stay arrangement at this hotel, while our car insurance provided us the extended-use of a vehicle.

So, dear friends, this is our story so far. No, we do not know if our house or The Writing Loft facility is still standing. The town of Paradise is publishing a list of the condition of every structure as they proceed through town but they have not gotten to our side of town yet. We do however, know that our car has not be touched. We cannot retrieve it or our belongings but they appear to be safe until the all clear—believe me, we tried. We will have to do without our things or knowledge of the state of our house for several weeks more.

There is much more to our story, and now that I am able to be in contact with the outside world, I will keep you informed."
PrevNextReturn to Leisure


Messages in this Thread
 Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account - Bear900/CA on 11/19/18 11:11pm
 Timeline of Paradise fire shows little time to escape - Bear900/CA on 11/19/18 11:46pm
 Thanks for sharing this. There are many who only managed -  MW/VA on 11/20/18 10:19am
 Pilots in dramatic Woolsey fire rescue while low on gas - Bear900/CA on 11/20/18 10:53am
 Re: Pilots in dramatic Woolsey fire rescue while low on gas -  Cheryl Elliott on 11/21/18 6:52am
 this is the most tragic part of these horrible fires. -  Cheryl Elliott on 11/21/18 6:54am
 Reasons for extreme gratitude this year! Tks for sharing. n/m -  JanetK_CA on 11/22/18 4:55pm
 Re: Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account - Luckydog on 11/24/18 3:04pm
 Re: Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account - Bear900/CA on 11/25/18 1:26am
 Re: Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account - Luckydog on 11/25/18 3:58pm
 Re: Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account - Bear900/CA on 11/25/18 11:13pm
 Re: Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account -  JanetK_CA on 11/26/18 7:16pm
 I agree. n/m - Luckydog on 11/27/18 8:47am
 Re: Escaping Paradise fire, first hand account - Luckydog on 11/27/18 8:46am



 
Find a Notary   Notary Supplies   Terms   Privacy Statement   Help/FAQ   About   Contact Us   Archive  
 
Notary Rotary™ is a trademark of Notary Rotary. Copyright © 2002-2024, Notary Rotary, Inc.  All rights reserved.
500 New York Ave, Des Moines, IA 50313.