As hundreds were being evacuated from the 117 Fire, Megan Wojchik with the Triple S Ranch drove into the flames… literally.
“You couldn’t see the road in front of you, I mean the smoke was just awful and the flames were just getting closer they were hopping the dirt road, so we were just doing the best we can, we were trying to get emergency vehicles to lead us in but they couldn’t see," Wojchik said.
She and her team hooked up trucks and trailers and headed to help their friends in the mandatory evacuation zone, just like they did in the Midway Fire a few weeks back, but it didn’t come without a price.
The owner of the Triple S Ranch just drove through ACTIVE FLAMES to help rescue upwards of 60 horses from the 117 fire in El Paso County. Here’s my Facebook live version of our interview: https://t.co/X47Vzw1alB @KOAA pic.twitter.com/qdEWorfyLM
— Lena Howland (@LenaHowland) April 18, 2018
“The horse trailers have wooden floors and we had to drive through some flames and my trailer caught on fire a little bit, we burnt a few holes in the bottom but that can be fixed, animals are a little bit harder to replace," she said.
Luckily, they were still able to rescue at least 60 horses in danger of the fire without any injuries.
“I mean our animals are our babies here and I can only imagine being in that situation so just happy to help," she said.
But there are still many homeowners that were forced to leave in only a moments notice.
At 10, we will hear the stories from evacuees that had only a moment’s notice to leave their home because of the 117 fire. @KOAA pic.twitter.com/DD9XQwQ3dd
— Lena Howland (@LenaHowland) April 18, 2018
“This is what I got out, right here," Ken Nixon said as he pointed at his roommate.
Ken Nixon and his roommate Veronica Reyas have lived in the area for the past four years.
“This is the third fire that’s been close by to my house this year and this is the closest, I’m afraid," he said.
Reyas is disabled and unable to drive. She was home alone when the fire broke out.
One deputy I spoke with on scene told me off camera he hasn’t seen anything like this 117 fire in 20 years. He says the difficult conditions are forcing the fire to jump over roads quickly. Not a good sign. @KOAA pic.twitter.com/vrotkopzgq
— Lena Howland (@LenaHowland) April 17, 2018
“My neighbor across the street, he said it’s time to go, the flames are coming," Reyas said.
Her neighbor came in to help and brought her to safety at the Red Cross shelter set up at the Fountain Valley Baptist Church.
“Not too concerned because I knew she was here already and I knew if she was here the dog was here, other than that, we’re good," Nixon said.
He believes their home is out of the fire’s path for now, but he has friends that weren’t so lucky.
“One of them, I was told right here that it was actually blazing down… when they were leaving…. so I hate to think about going to see that," he said.
No word yet on when any of these homeowners will be allowed back into their homes. All mandatory evacuation orders are still in place as of late Tuesday night.
