A fast-moving wildfire that jumped over fire trucks and made it difficult for crews to reach hot spots destroyed homes in northwest Reno, Nevada, on Sunday. Shifting winds challenged firefighters trying to bring it under control, and authorities urged some 90,000 people to evacuate.
At least six people 鈥� three first responders and three civilians 鈥� were injured, officials said. Officials said the fire was 鈥渉uman-caused鈥� but did not provide details on how they reached that conclusion, or whether it was intentionally set or accidental.
The Hawk Fire began Saturday and quickly grew to more than 23 square miles (60 sq. km.) as it spread across the Peavine Peak area of the Humboldt鈥揟oiyabe National Forest, where rugged foothills are ringed by homes and businesses near the California state line.
Some 42,000 residents have been ordered evacuated as the 鈥淕O NOW鈥� zone expanded, reaching the edge of the University of Nevada. An additional 45,000 people were in the adjacent evacuation warning zone. Authorities implored all of them to leave and be prepared to stay away for several days, because shifting and strengthening winds were expected to make the fire even more unpredictable.
鈥淧lease get out if you can right now,鈥� Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam said.
A family raced to grab possessions but lost their home
Cari Kieffer said a video posted on social media showed her house entirely burned down, with only a scorched basketball hoop still standing.
鈥淚 woke up this morning and just started crying 鈥� all my kids, they lost everything,鈥� Kieffer said Sunday. 鈥淲e lost all our stuff. Everything we own is gone.鈥�
Kieffer had been watching her son鈥檚 football game Saturday when she learned that their home on the outskirts of Reno was in the evacuation zone. An app the family used to track the fire鈥檚 progress had been lagging significantly behind its actual location, she said, so they thought firefighters had kept the blaze from their neighborhood.
Instead, Kieffer, her husband and their four children ages 3 to 16 raced to save their dogs and whatever possessions they could retrieve. Ash rained down, and the wind blew like an oven blast from a wall of flames advancing down the hillside toward their neighborhood, she said.
鈥淚 kept looking outside and the flames just kept getting closer and closer every time I looked,鈥� Kieffer said. 鈥淚 was like, we gotta go like now.鈥�
Eyes watering and throat burning, Kieffer grabbed a handful of clothes, a Bible, her wedding photos and her mother鈥檚 ashes. In the frenzy, as firefighters yelled at her family to leave immediately, she said she forgot her family鈥檚 birth certificates and was unable to salvage her childhood photos.
The family drove to a friend鈥檚 home but had to evacuate again. They learned later Saturday evening that their own home was gone.
Governor declares state of emergency, mobilizes National Guard
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo declared a state of emergency in Washoe County and mobilized the Nevada National Guard to support aerial firefighting with two helicopter crews as well as 60 troops to help police safeguard evacuated neighborhoods. Also responding were 800 fire personnel.
Nearly 10,000 customers were without power in Washoe County on Sunday, down from 60,000 on Saturday. Portions of U.S. Route 395, a major north-south highway, were closed due to the fire. Reno, with more than 280,000 residents, is the largest city in Nevada outside of metro Las Vegas.
Washoe County emergency officials opened the Reno-Sparks Convention Center to evacuees, but said they couldn鈥檛 bring their pets 鈥� small animals and large animals were to be left at two other locations. Casinos in Reno offered discounts on hotel rooms to evacuees.
The fire wasn鈥檛 troubling to some at first
The fire was so small Saturday morning that it wasn鈥檛 even a concern, said Tyler Duvall, who went camping over the weekend. By the next day, his house was in the evacuation zone.
鈥淭he wind really blew it up,鈥� Duvall said.
On Saturday alone, 15 new fires popped up across Nevada. Months of dry weather and a this past winter across the American West have created prime fire conditions. Earlier this month, wildfires forced the evacuation of in the Spokane area, while three wildfires north of Reno forced more than 13,000 residents from their homes.
A mountaintop home goes up in flames
Jaida Hargrove鈥檚 grandfather, Rick Arrate, lived alone on Peavine Mountain, which overlooks Reno and Sparks. Firefighters used a bulldozer, cut down trees and applied fire retardant in their attempt to contain the flames, Hargrove said.
鈥淭hey all thought it would be OK,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd then, in about 30 minutes, the winds just changed and it came way too fast.鈥�
Arrate and the firefighters were quickly forced off the mountain. 鈥淎ll he was able to take with him was his two golden retrievers,鈥� Hargrove said.
Arrate spent Saturday night with Hargrove鈥檚 parents, his next steps unknown.
Separate GoFundMe crowdfunding campaigns were set up to assist Arrate and the Kieffer family.
A Nevada transplant gets a rude welcome to Reno
Retired police officer and firefighter Ted Melden has seen his share of Mother Nature鈥檚 fury since moving to Reno with his wife earlier this month from Chapin, South Carolina. So far, he has experienced a hailstorm with flash flooding, two different power outages and, now, the second wildfire incident in the region in two weeks.
鈥淛ust another natural disaster,鈥� Melden said.
In the two years he lived in South Carolina, Melden said knocked over trees in his yard, while a tornado did some damage in his neighborhood.
For now, Melden hasn鈥檛 been ordered to leave his home, but he has his bags packed just in case.
鈥淵ou just have to roll with the flow and be ready,鈥� he said.
David Barb returned from a weekend hunting trip to find the fire had leveled his taxidermy shop, but his house nearby appeared to have been spared thanks to workers with a landscaping company who cut a fire break, he said. His wife was home when the fire started on the other side of the mountain and later evacuated to a friend鈥檚 house.
鈥淚鈥檓 kind of devastated, but thank God everyone鈥檚 safe,鈥� he said Sunday.
Residents just outside the evacuation zone are keeping watch
The University of Nevada, where many of the 20,000 undergraduates moved into their housing this weekend, was just outside the evacuation zone Sunday.
Two hospitals evacuated patients and the sheriff said his office was keeping a close watch on whether to evacuate the county jail.
The fire moved exceptionally fast Saturday night, jumping over fire trucks and making it difficult for responders to get to hot spots while residents were trying to get out, the sheriff said.
鈥淚t was extremely confusing,鈥� Balaam said, describing how changing winds sent the flames in different directions.
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Raby reported from Charleston, West Virginia, Brook from New Orleans and Seewer from Toledo, Ohio.
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