It has always been a matter of when, not if, the ridge will burn. When turned out to be last month as evacuations began in lower Paradise. In all, 74 homes were destroyed and at least 20 others were damaged. Over 9,000 people were evacuated and over 5,000 firefighters from as far as Idaho and Nevada helped battle the Humboldt blaze.
Once we were down to 1000 firefighters and had 100% containment it was time to see what we had learned.
I have learned that:
1. Things could have been much worse
2. There was a dire need for additional routes out of Paradise
3. Firefighters are the best
4. Disaster response personnel in Butte County are well trained
5. This is a great community
This firestorm burned from Forrest Ranch to Butte College, but more importantly it lit fires in people's hearts.
An evacuation center was set up at Pleasant Valley High School in Chico. This is less than a mile from my residence so off I went Friday morning not sure what to expect.
I saw the Red Cross, Enloe Hospital Staff, a gentleman for Butte Behavioral Health, as well as Russ and his Boy Scouts of America. There was Home Depot's Team Depot and Jill of Buildrite. Teena from Hotel Diamond and Chuck at The End Zone made incredibly generous contributions.
There were also volunteers showing up all day asking what they could do to help. I saw individuals, fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, teachers at the school and countless alumni.
There was a flood of public donations from the community as well; pillows, food clothing and time. I saw a whole county really pull together and I found out a lot about the people I have lived amongst for nearly 15 years. So once the shelters were closed and the fires contained, I suppose I had learned one more thing.
I am proud to call Butte County home.