Renee just sent me this photo news from the Westbank fire. She was going up to visit an aunt. Here is here account of the fire:
I took these photos between 4 and 4:30. We drove into Westbank just as the fire started and watched it as it came down the hill. I've never seen anything like it before - it was like the fire was pouring over the hill. It's really a miracle that no more than 3 homes were taken. We watched as 2 of those homes caught and burned, it was devastating and certainly didn't look like any homes on that hillside had a chance. Those pilots and fire fighters are truly heroes!
The people had hardly any warning... as we drove into Westbank we saw a small ball of smoke above the mountain. We stopped just inside town and within 15 minutes the fire raced down the hillside. We heard that police were literally running down streets screaming, "Get out now! Get out now!". I met one family who grabbed their hamster, some photos, and some clothes and left not knowing if they would have a house to go back to :( They had 2 little kids and I felt so sad for them. The photos I took were from about 1/2 hour after the fire started. The worst part was the wind blowing straight down that hill over all those homes... We were visiting my aunt about a half-hour away listening to the news on the radio. The fire was 15 hectares shortly after it started about 3:30, and by the time we sat down for dinner at 7:30 it was already up to 200 hectares! It moved incredibly fast!
Say a prayer for all these people. How devastating. And how quickly fire moves.
And please make sure to back up your photos and store your negatives and CD's in a separate location from your home.
Michele, this is exactly where the Spindors live ( remember Vittoria and Perry & Vincent )We visited them last year. Their street is a block away - I just punched in their address against the map of the fire boundary. Please keep them in your prayers. I believe the photos Renee too show the catholic school at the bottom of the hill, right along 97 - I could be mistaken though. I'll be trying to get a hold of them in the morning.
Dorota
Posted by: Dorota Hernandez | July 20, 2009 at 12:23 AM
How's Renee coming back with the roads cutoff ??
Posted by: Dorota Hernandez | July 20, 2009 at 12:25 AM
Wow, I never knew that Westbank Fire. That's pretty interesting...
Posted by: Buck Thompson | July 20, 2009 at 12:51 AM
Oh wow, hopefully they are okay! Let me know what you find out.
Posted by: Michele | July 27, 2009 at 11:17 PM