It was the start of a new week, coming eight days after the fires began their deadly rampage across California’s beloved Wine Country. And it felt as if a new chapter were unfolding Monday morning as thousands now have the all-clear to return to their homes, or in some cases what was left of them.
With the winds that fueled the blazes dying down, and fire crews making dramatic progress in containing the largest fires, the number of residents under evacuation orders was cut from 100,000 to 40,000, officials said. With their homes no longer in harm’s way, the evacuees slowly made their way back, even as some fires still burned and the skies remained stained with lingering smoke. Things had started to improve on Sunday, as intermittent blue skies returned and evacuations were lifted in parts of Sonoma and Solano counties.
Just one door down from Sarah Kellner’s home on Londonberry Drive in Santa Rosa, teams of National Guardsmen picked through mountains of debris for bones and other human remains. Kellner was one of the lucky ones, she said. Her home stood standing, even as the house behind hers burned to the ground and dozens of others on the street next to hers were reduced to rubble.
“We have a house,” she said with relief, tears welling in her eyes as she thought of her neighbors who do not. “There were a lot of elderly people in that neighborhood. I would just really like to know if they’re safe.”
Kellner and her daughter, Elizabeth Schieberl, a sophomore at Maria Carrillo High School said they’re grateful to get back to their house, even if it doesn’t quite feel like the home they had always known, with a sea of destruction stretching out from the edge of their street. Schieberl intends to offer space to friends who have lost their homes, several of whom are now rooming with relatives far from Santa Rosa.
“They’re all staying way out of town … but when school starts up again, it’s going to be extremely hard for them to get to school,” she said. “So I just want to get to my house so they have a place to stay and get to school easily.”
There’s a still a lot of cleanup ahead, Kellner said. There are refrigerators and freezers to clean out, windows to scrub and a trailer to make habitable while they hire professional cleaners to scrub the stink of smoke from their home.
“We’ll get to start assessing the damage,” she said.
Not far away, Bob Boettcher used a hose to spray the leaves off his roof. He arrived at his home at 5 a.m. on Monday so he could make it in time for the garbage truck to come by. He cleaned out his entire refrigerator and freezer, throwing away all the food that had been left rotting for days after the power was cut off last Sunday. He knew his home was still there after seeing satellite footage of the fire’s aftermath.
Jennifer Taddei, on the other hand, came back to find her home in ruins. It was not a surprise: She had learned of the loss on Tuesday.
“We were prepared for it,” she said. “But it was still pretty devastating to see the damage and to see your possessions in that kind of state.”
She said she will continue regularly, at least for a while, to put out food for two cats they were not able to find as they fled from their home.
Others began to take the first steps toward reassembling their lives.
“This is my home I’m going to come back without question,” said Howard Lasker, 56, who returned with his daughter to view their torched house in Santa Rosa. “I have to rebuild. I want to rebuild.”
Although the weather was still hot and dry Monday, calmer winds and the possibility of rain later in the week should help crews tamp down fires, said Scott Rowe, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. He predicted a quarter-inch (0.6 centimeters) would fall in Sonoma and Napa counties late Thursday.
“Any sort of moisture is welcome at this point,” he said. “In terms of fire, the weather outlook is looking to be improving.”
The blazes have been blamed for at least 40 deaths and destroyed some 5,700 homes and other structures. The death toll could climb as searchers dig through the ruins for people listed as missing. Hundreds were unaccounted for, though authorities said many of them are probably safe but haven’t let anyone know.
Another sign of hope: Pacific Gas and Electric Company said it expected to restore power and gas to the area by late Monday, an key development since authorities said they would not let people return home until it is safe and utilities are restored.
Many evacuees grew increasingly impatient to go home — or at least find out whether their homes were spared. Others were reluctant to go back or to look for another place to live.
Juan Hernandez, who escaped with his family from his apartment Oct. 9 before it burned down, still had his car packed and ready to go in case the fires flared up again and threatened his sister’s house, where they have been staying in Santa Rosa.
“Every day we keep hearing sirens at night, alarms,” Hernandez said. “We’re scared. When you see the fire close to your house, you’re scared.”
Julia Prodis Sulek, Ethan Baron and Erin Baldassari contributed to this report
