From Flames to Floods

How could we forget the crazy fire season! It was CRAZY this summer and started so early! The whole west hills of Fairview lit up with flames and smoke made for some amazing photos, and yet some scary times. Never in my life did I think I would be asked to evacuate me home in less then 5 minutes, but it happened! And I have to write about it to never forget it!

Sam had just left the house to go practice baseball with his team to get ready for the Lions Tournament. The fire was still blazing but we were ok....or so we thought. All the sudden the STRONG winds shifted and the alarms started going off. I had not ever heard that alarm so I quickly turned to Facebook to see messages and posts from city and county officials that Fairview was on a mandatory evacuation and we needed to get out! Pure fright swept through me as it must have everyone cause I could NOT get through to Sam on his cell to tell him what was up. And the thought that he had others kids there made me sick of what to do. Our Sports director LeeR went down and told them to leave and Sam loaded boys took a couple home and kept the rest with him.

Now what to grab in 5 minutes....computer, camera, the kids backpacks we had them pack "just in case" which we never thought would happen, and the family picture on the wall as we shut the door...Oh ya and one giant black lab! Sam dropped the kids from the team off to parents at the Red Cross Center in Mt and then we went to his Brother Wes' house in Mt! Then the calls came in and I realized how blessed I am to have such amazing friends. Offers of beds, clothes, food, place for the dog, and just words of love! It made a tough situation a little easier! We stayed the night in Nephi and we were let back into our homes the next afternoon around two! It was only a short time but really made me think of how we can be better prepared.

All while the West Hills were on fire, and fire start ed in Huntington Canyon, Sam's way to work. It shut the road down! Sam spent a few nights in Huntington with his brother Jared.  We were so lucky to have so much family to help out during the fires...

Now we deal with flooding.... Huntington Canyon has has LOTS of mud slides and they aren't little ones. They have closed down the canyon a total of 16 work days at different times and I know we aren't out of the wood yet! The flooding here in town has been something to see. Water troughs, trees, and debris have come down and ruined hay fields. We were able to go out and watch one come down! It was crazy! Not sure how long we will have to deal with it all but we are just so thankful for the firefighters who saved our homes!