My Day at the Fires with the Salvation Army

A Day with the Salvation Army at the Fire

My day started later, but Major Wayne Wetter, the officer in charge of the Redding Corps of the Salvation Army was up and out of his home at 6 AM. First to the office to be sure that the supply of food and other emergency items were coming in to the Corps HQ, and then he was off to the Incident Command Post (ICP) briefing at the Anderson Fair Grounds. The incident, as we all know now, is the 3 week old fire burning in the Shasta-Trinity Mountains just west of Redding. Split up into a number of fires, the two big ones in our area are the Motion Fire north of Highway 299 just NW of Redding and the Moon fire, due west of Redding in the rural area of Igo and Ono. While at the briefing, he was told that a couple of large vans were needed to haul valuable art and historical items from Old Shasta, and within a few minutes he had arranged to have them driven from the Corps warehouse on Airport Road to Old Shasta, just ahead of one of the first calls for the closing of Highway 299.

I joined Major Wetter at 12 noon and along with a photographer from the Record Searchlight, we headed for Igo, with a load of water bottles, food, and some medical supplies in the back of our van. Arriving at the “Road Closed” blockade at Placer and South Fork Road, the on-duty CHP officer told us of some local folks asking about food and water, along with some nearby residents that were packed into their van there at the roadblock. We, in turn, got out and told all that were in that area that we had set up an eating place and rest center at the nearby Igo Church, and that all were welcome to come there for food, water, cots, and just a place to get out of the heat and smoke. The disabled folks in the parked van immediately took us up on our offer and followed us to the Church.

The Church multi-family hall, which was actually opened and stocked on Thursday, was a “safe haven in the fire area”. Maps put up on the walls by Cal Fire gave all a good indication of exactly where the fire was, where it was headed, and where it had burned. Many in the hall could tell us exactly how close the fire was to their homes, what they left behind, and how much they appreciated the firefighters fighting these giant fires.

Word got to us that there were some folks that had not evacuated that needed water and food, so off we went to try to get to their homes. Some of these folks just wanted to “stick it out”, and in one home that we aided, they had previously prepared their property with plenty of hoses, and large open areas between the trees and the buildings. But, they could not get in or out, for once they left their place, they would not be allowed back in. With their many animals, the choice to stay was easy for them. This is a tough call for Cal Fire, for, in this case, they were probably OK, but for others, such as those on Zogg Mine Road, the fire could easily overtake them and their property.

We then got the word that some folks in Ono were stranded, so off we went. The Ono Store, which is almost the “city hall” for this remote and rural community, was the meeting place at that time, and we ran into Sheriff Tom Bosenko and the Cal Fire Public Information people. Apparently a number of folks in this area had been complaining about their “evacuation situation”, and wanted to see the Sheriff. Tom, a personal friend of mine, did a super job of explaining the “why’s” of evacuation, and, although not all would agree with him, it was clear that his driving interest was for the safety of both life and property. We took a list from the store of “needed items” that they had run out of (bread, milk, baby food, etc), in that the store owners could not leave, and we would get it back to them in the late afternoon.

We headed back to Redding and the Corps HQ; the Major checked in with the ICP to see if we were needed at the Motion Fire; then we started filling the van with supplies to go back out to the Igo Church and the Ono Store. The Major got home at 9 PM. What a day, and it would start over again Saturday morning.

Some observations: (1) The Cal Fire Team is very well organized, and keeps hourly progress reports available on all of the fires. (2) The Road Closures are necessary, although very inconvenient for many, for the fire and other emergency vehicles, such as PG&E crews, need to have open roads to do their jobs.(3) The general attitude of both those folks that have been evacuated and those from the community that are just helping is just wonderful. There are some that are very upset with having to leave their homes, which is understandable, but then a much larger group that is just thankful that the fire did not get them. And lastly the overall feeling that when a disaster strikes, like these fires, the real spirit of helping others comes through “loud and clear”. “A Caring People” clearly shows, and I was so proud to be part of these folks lives at this difficult time.

Ron Largent
July 12, 2008
Redding, CA
Salvation Army Advisory Board President

www.ronlargent.com ronlargent@kw.com