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| Wildfire seen near California 99 in Northern California. |
After nearly two weeks of efforts, firefighters were able to get the Ponderosa Fire under control.
The Ponderosa Fire that started on Aug. 29 has now been fully contained. It fire burned more than 4,000 acres across parts of Butte County and destroyed 32 homes and 22 outbuildings, according to the Cal Fire website.
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| John Ballinger of Oroville, suspect in Ponderosa Fire |
Firefighters worked day and night for nearly two weeks and were able to contain it completely. The smoke could be seen along major highways across cities such as Chico and Oroville.
With high temperatures in the 100s, the fire showed no signs of stopping.
Evacuations were announced as police and firefighters began to fear for the safety of the residents of Forbestown and the surrounding areas where the fire had broken out.
Angela Thatcher of Oroville recalled when the fire first started. As it was spreading, she feared having to evacuate. “You just saw smoke in the air and knew this could be bad,” she said.
Since the fire was so strong and showed no signs of slowing down in its early stages, the air quality quickly became an issue for Butte County residents.
Victor Guerrero, a waiter at Tres Hombres restaurant in Chico, one day noticed the air quality seemed to have changed in a matter of hours.
“I noticed as I was working the patio area the sky got lighter, like an orange color, and you could see smoke in the sky," he said. "It was as if the fire was so close.”
“I noticed as I was working the patio area the sky got lighter, like an orange color, and you could see smoke in the sky," he said. "It was as if the fire was so close.”
With the fire being as large as it was, it was all hands were on deck at Cal Fire. Volunteer firefighter Benton Becker called the fire scene “strong and scary.”
Becker’s wife, Dakota, described having her husband away fighting the fire as one of the most stressful times in their lives.
“We had just had our daughter," she said. "And after the first month of becoming parents, he was gone two to three weeks at a time fighting the fires.”
-- By Katalina Santamaria
Photo by Katalina Santamaria