When we arrived, friends had set up a campsite for us - Laurel and me, my sister and 2 of her kids. Tents, sleeping bags, pads, warm clothing, hot food, a campfire, and the arms of loved ones. We'd had offers of couches to sleep on, but I felt we needed to stay together, my sister and I, to at least have that much. We are so lucky to be surrounded by so many caring and resourceful people.
Yesterday I left Laurel with friends. She needed to have a normal and playful day, free from stress and worry. I drove out to buy myself some shoes (they turned out to be too small - apparently I'm a bit preoccupied) and then drove to the site of our former home. The road we live on is about 1 mile wide, dead end, and now mostly blackened forest on both sides. There were tree service vehicles, power company trucks, many fire vehicles (still checking for hot spots and flareups - they'll be here for weeks.) I drove very slowly, taking it all in. About half of the houses seem to have survived, many are eerily missing. I passed one man, large and strong, sobbing against his truck, among friends. The power company was putting up new poles at the corner of our driveway, one news crew heading back to their van, one from another station just pulling up. Because of the intensity of the fire, the multiple structures, and the fact that it can be seen from the highway, our home is the feature story in all media including CNN. Here's another video of my mother's house:
As I walked onto the property a reporter asks if she can speak with me. At this point, seeing it all for the first time, I could barely form a sentence. I probably mumbled incoherently to her, telling her who I was and showing her the remnants of my home. She's a local girl, grew up not too far away, and I recognize her family name. Still, I told I wasn't able to do an interview, and sent her to my brother. He'd arrived the day before, the moment they opened the road, and had already spoken to numerous reporters.
This story mentions him (and his girlfriend's unfortunate Harley,) and in the print version there was a photo of him sorting through melted LPs. Some of the facts are incorrect but that's to be expected.
http://origin.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_9668081
More later, I've got to go now and run errands, get a PO box, ship a belt to a customer, call my mother with an update, tell the library they won't be getting their books back, and a thousand other things.
Thanks to all for the thousands of prayers, kind words, and offers of everything from clothing to a place to lay our heads. I cannot say in words how much it means to all of us. Thanks.
Update: two of the three cats have been found. Mom's Moses (renamed "Winston" at the animal shelter because my brother couldn't remember his name in the moment) is being treated for minor burns on his paws and the shelter is looking for a foster home. Sophie, our skittish, antisocial outdoor brown tabby, showed up this morning looking thin but fine.
No comments:
Post a Comment