On Sunday, October 8, 2017, we gathered for Sunday Dinner at Matt and KatieRose's house to celebrate Dave's birthday. The beauty of a Sunday dinner routine is no matter where you are, as long as you are all together, you are home. That night was full of the usual organized chaos of kids, dogs, and chatter. We lingered on the patio enjoying the beautiful warm night watching the sunset. Happy birthday was sung and candles were blown out. It was one of those evenings that you breathe in the goodness of a beautiful moment. We went to bed that night with the windows open enjoying the breeze, certain that fog was headed inland.
In the early hours of October 9, 2017, Dave's 62nd birthday, a vicious fire raged through Santa Rosa devastating homes, businesses and a mobile home park. It was a freak anomaly which resulted in a 55-mile an hour wind carrying embers from a fire in Calistoga.
We were awakened out of a dead sleep by a call from Katie who informed us that they were following voluntary evacuation orders to leave their home. Maddie was evacuated as well. They were all headed to Petaluma. Six loved ones and two cherished dogs. Brent acted quickly because he knew he had little time to get his family out of the path of this deadly fire before he was called into the Coroner's office. There is a team of (only) 6 deputies to cover the coroner's needs for the entire county. Brent, one of those six, knew he would be deployed to ground zero and could remain there indefinitely.
Dave and I hit the floor and immediately checked TV news and Facebook. It was unbelievable to see the devastation which occurred while we slept. Shopping centers, and an entire subdivision, office buildings and one of our beloved Sonoma County Landmarks, the Round Barn, were left in rubble. It was unbelievable. Petaluma became the command center for fire victims. Shelters were established in a matter of hours, livestock evacuated to the Fairgrounds. As daylight broke, the heavy smoke in the air was an unwelcomed confirmation of horror we had seen on the news.
Brent no sooner got Katie and the boys safely to Petaluma and was called into the worst natural disaster California has ever seen. The images of this phenomenal disaster, of biblical proportions, were heartbreaking. So many people lost everything. There were first responders whose homes were burning while they fought this deadly and unpredictable fire. The weather didn't cooperate with high winds and heat.
For five days we all watched and waited. We prayed. We packed precious, irreplaceable objects, jewelry, and photos. The car was gassed and important papers were ready to go We watched the immediate opening of numerous shelters in our city. We hoped and prayed for those who were in harm's way doing their job fighting this wretched beast-- many working 24/7. We did our very best to comfort our KatieGirl who had to watch all this devastation and loss knowing Brent was at ground zero. We had our family evacuation plan in place. On Wednesday night, the fire had spread into Sonoma and threatened to come over the hill into East Petaluma. We waited for evacuation orders and, thankfully, they never came.
When I packed our bags and made the mental list of the family photos which would go with me, I never panicked. I had an eerie sense of calm which prevailed and I'm sure it was, in part, knowing our evacuation plan was in place. All of my kids (except for the Shasta Contingent) were within a three block radius. If it came to evacuation, I knew we would all be together and really, there wasn't much beyond that which was important to me. I guess evacuations are a lot like Sunday dinner….no matter where you are, as long as you are all together, you are home.
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