Homes reduced to ash, debris near Vacaville

Homes reduced to ash, debris near Vacaville

Along the collection of canyons called Blue Ridge in an unincorporated area near Vacaville, an estimated two dozen homes are now reduced to ash and debris.

VACAVILLE, Calif. - Along the collection of canyons called Blue Ridge in an unincorporated area near Vacaville, an estimated two dozen homes are now reduced to ash and debris.

Authorities say the residents of four addresses in the area are unaccounted for.

"We are checking every residence up there. It is isolated," says Vacaville Fire Protection District Fire Chief Howard Wood.

The fire cut a path of destruction through Mix Canyon, Gates Canyon, Miller Canyon, and others. All of them remote and some beyond the reach of firefighters.

"They couldn't get out. Some have pools and ponds. We told them to shelter in them because we could not get to them. The road was flames," said Wood.

A PG&E worker died of an apparent heart attack, according to the chief, while clearing utility poles and lines during the fire.

Flames came close to the home where this 15-year-old lives but spared it. She had gotten a middle of the night phone call from her father who told her to wake her mother and start evacuating.

"I was scared at first, but I had to be strong for my little brother. He was really upset," says Meleah Fields.

The flames came whipping through early Wednesday morning from Napa County.

"Been here all my life. And all the fires, I've never seen one as bad as that one. It hit hard and heavy," said Wood.

Firefighters came quickly, but the fire was quicker.

"We had vehicles that were on fire before we even got up to the hilltop...The smoke was so thick we had trouble determining where the fire was," said Wood.

Authorities are also attempting to see how many homes were damaged or destroyed.

About 1,000 were evacuated. But as of Thursday afternoon, some of the evacuation orders have been lifted.