Valley Fire Evacuees Overwhelmed By Donations, Worry About Fate Of Homes
CALISTOGA (CBS13) – Food, clothes and blankets – donations are piling up and getting put to use by those most in need. It's a rapid response for the hundreds left homeless by the Valley Fire.
Jesse Stevens and his five-year-old daughter were evacuated from Middletown, a town of more than 1,300 residents, leaving everything behind. She picked out a donated Barbie bike to help her pass the time here.
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"We got a little tent in the corner and I have three other sons and a daughter," Stevens said.
The outpouring of support for those stuck here in tents, trailers and truck beds is helping displaced homeowners deal with the unknown and loss.
"But I got to say, people here, the Red Cross, and all these people, they're doing magnificent job. Feeding and supplying and giving things," said Mike Stacy, who was evacuated from Cobb.
So many donations have come in that at one point organizers turned a truck around.
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"It's amazing to see these people come together, after we loaded this truck up, people just kept coming and coming," said T.W. Reynoso, who is helping with donations.
Together they sit, waiting for updates from fire crews about whether they'll have a home where they can return.
"I mean, I'm happy I'm alive. I'm happy – it's a tremendous asset for people struggling right now," said Allan Gleicher, who was evacuated from Middletown.