Family's Home Destroyed In Fast-Moving Yuba County Fire
YUBA COUNTY (CBS13) – It was a race against the wind Tuesday as resources worked to get ahead of the fast-moving Intanko Fire that burned across Yuba County, forced evacuations and destroyed one family's home.
Crews were on the ground and other resources had to fight from the sky as the fire grew to burn over 900 acres before forward progress was stopped Tuesday evening.
"Fires are hard to put out to begin with, and then when you add the wind to it. It pushes them a lot quicker," said Cal Fire spokesperson Lynne Tolmachoff.
Planes flew feet from the ground as helicopters dropped water.
"For firefighters, they're just trying to get ahead of the fire to make it stop," Tolmachoff said.
Sam Houston, whose home couldn't be saved, said there was no stopping the flames.
"We seen it when it was still on the other side of the road," Houston said.
In less than ten minutes, the Houstons home of ten years was gone.
"We came out and started watering things down the best we could," Houston said. "Obviously, it wasn't enough."
The fire also threatened Beale Air Force Base.
"The fire grew rapidly onto the base, came through the base housing," Tolmachoff said.
As airmen and their families evacuated the base, crews rushed in to save it.
Tolmachoff lives on base and says fires in the area aren't uncommon.
"Beale, almost every year, often has a fire of some sort. It is the base of the foothills here in California so they definitely have a threat out here," Tolmachoff said.
Despite the devastation, the Houston family says they're just lucky to be alive.
"That's most important, we all survived it," Houston said.
The family has created a GoFundMe to help with rebuilding their home
The cause of the fire has not yet been determined. Evacuation orders have been lifted. Just before 10 p.m., Cal Fire said containment was at 40% and crews would be on scene throughout the night to strengthen containment lines and extinguish hotspots.
