Evacuees worry about homes as holiday approaches
Thousands of people under wildfire evacuation orders in Southern California wondered if they’ll be home for the holiday as fire officials braced for a new round of strong winds Wednesday.
The so-called Thomas Fire — one of the largest ever recorded in the state — is more than half contained, but officials were wary that harsh gusts could whip up new danger.
Those who fled the flames in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties feared they might not have homes to go back to.
“My husband has the feeling, ‘Why aren’t they letting us back in?”’ said 82-year-old Curry Sawyer, whose Christmas tree is up still waiting for their grandkids to decorate it after she and her husband Ray had to evacuate from their home in Santa Barbara two weeks ago.
“But they’ve got hot spots up there and if we get more Santa Ana winds, we’re going to be back to square one. I’m not sure we’re out of the woods.”
The devastating fire that began on Dec. 4 has destroyed at least 750 homes.
Even if their beloved home of five decades survives the next onslaught of winds, the Sawyers are preparing for Christmas in yet another hotel.
“This is getting ridiculous,” Curry Sawyer said from her hotel in Goleta.
The Sawyers’ gifts for their family are hidden away in closets waiting to be wrapped, the ingredients for gingerbread men are sitting in cupboards, and the kindling for the fireplace has been chopped.
They were planning a big family Christmas with their sons, who each are married and have a daughter, and live in Los Angeles and Amherst, Massachusetts.
If their home doesn’t make it, or if a mandatory evacuation remains in place come Christmas, Sawyer said the family will make do in Los Angeles. Her son’s home can accommodate her other son’s family, but Sawyer and her husband would have to stay in a hotel.
“We’ll be more just trying to cramp ourselves into a small space,” she said. “But at least we’ll be together.”