If you ever wondered what it’s like to drive through a forest fire, one gentleman and his family had the harrowing experience of doing it for you. And lucky for us, they rolled a cellphone video.
The shocking video captures their escape route out of Anderson Springs, California where wildfires have consumed nearly 74,000 acres and led to the deaths of three people in Northern California. The so-called Valley Fire has destroyed homes in Napa, Lake and Sonoma Counties.
The unnamed Youtube user who shot the video leaving Anderson Springs, admits in the comments section that they probably waited too long to get out.
“We are the last house at the very back of the Springs, down in a gulch,” wrote user MulletFive, who submitted the video. “There was no smoke or ash coming our way, and there were no sirens or air support nearby, so we honestly didn’t know how close it was.”
In the video, trees, bushes, grass and structures are all engulfed in flames. The most intense section occurs through about two minutes of video. Two additional clips show other cars evacuating the same area. In one instance, the driver is heard coughing, overcome somewhat by the smoke.
“There were no sirens or air support because there was zero firefighting effort in Anderson Springs. (This is NOT a dig at the firefighters, by the way! There was just way too much fire in every direction, and they didn’t have the resources to send to Anderson Springs.)”
With wildfires ravaging the west coast in recent weeks, this story highlights how important it is to be prepared. While they made it out safely, there are several ways that things could have gone horribly wrong. Their car could catch on fire. In haste they could drive off the road.
“In retrospect, we should have gone out for a drive to find out what was going on, but we were a little preoccupied with packing.”
