Grandma, there's alot of smoke...part 2.

  We evacuated that evening to my son's home that was nearby. From their development we could see the smoke billowing up from The Forest. I drove the car to a nearby hill behind the local high school and joined scores of other people just watching the fire. Many soon realized that while they were there out of curiosity, I was there because my home was probably in the path of the firestorm. So many people, total strangers offered help---a place to stay---a ride anywhere I needed to go---anything that they could do to be helpful.One woman came up to me with tears in her eyes and said she was sure my home would be safe. At that point I wasn't so sure.

  A few days went by of not knowing and still being unable to get any closer to our home. The news was constant....videos of homes in flames, reports of people and animals that did not escape. The roads were blocked with fire trucks, emergency vehicles and bulldozers.

  One morning a few days after the first reports of the fire, my daughter got a call from a friend of hers. He was a reporter for the local newspaper and he had somehow been allowed to go behind the police barricades to report the story. He called to tell her that he was standing in our yard, looking at our still-standing house....and he wanted to know if he should feed our chickens!!!!Our home was still standing!!! From the pictures that he sent us from his cell phone, it looked as if the forest around us had been burned, the grass was scorched but that the house was untouched! Our adult chickens were still alive and the 30 baby chicks in the incubator had all made it through untouched.

  He reported that there was a very large rabbit in a cage in our garage---with the door to the cage wide open. In our rush to evacuate we had no place for the farm animals and had to leave them behind. The rabbit's cage door had been left open so he could have a greater chance escaping. He was back in his cage with not a whisker singed.

  With this good news, we were hopeful again of seeing our home. But the news that night turned bad, with the wind shifting and the fire coming in many different directions. With this, came the pre-evacuation orders for my son's home---the one we were staying with!!! So once again we were packing up and waiting for the word to leave. It was a difficult time for all. Many more homes and out buildings were lost as this fire grew in intensity and strength. The smoke was incredible and the sight from nearby hilltops was unbelievable.

  Interestingly enough, the road to my garden center was never completely closed and the water and power were not turned off. So every day I would go to check on the place and to water. The helicopters loaded down with 500 gallons of water would be constantly flying overhead. Little did I know that one of those helicopters had dumped a bucket of water on my home to save it just a few days before.

  About 5 days after the fire started, we were allowed back to our homes for 15 minutes to retrieve medicine or pets that were left behind in the chaos of evacuating. We had a police escort to and from our homes, and as the police woman sat in her car, we were allowed to run inside. My daughter and I grabbed the 30 baby chicks and the rabbit. We were told that the SPCA had been feeding the adult hens in the outside pen, and that we couldn't take them. With the animals safely in our truck, we could take a minute to look around. The ground around the house was charred. There was smoke rising from piles of dead branches. The flames had come 18" from the foundation.

  As we drove back on the route to exit the Black Forest, we were struck with the complete devastation we saw. Homes gone. Forests burned to a crisp. A complete and utter silence over the entire area. The loss in some areas was complete. In other areas a home was untouched. A playground was still standing. A wooden cow lawn ornament stood guard over the property of her mistress, who would come home to find little else.

  Nine days after the beginning of the fire, we were allowed to return home. At first we were told we could stay only 3 hours, but then the all clear was given. The fire still raged east and north of us, but we were allowed to return home. As I went inside the house, I discovered that a portion of the kitchen ceiling had caved in. The water that was dropped on the roof to save it from catching fire had found an air vent. With all those gallons of water rushing in, the little air vent had bent and let the intruding water into the roof, which caused the ceiling to get wet and cave in. Other than that, and a little smoke smell in the basement, there was no damage whatsoever. We could see the burn marks just inches from the house, and the woods all around us had been affected. But the house was fine. Perfectly fine!

Continued----Part 3 to come.