Carr Fire

Carr Fire surpasses 100,000 acres, containment increases 23 percent

ByLaura Anthony KGO logo

Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Carr Fire surpasses 100,000 acres, containment increases 23 percent

The Carr Fire has reduced many homes to little more than rubble. There has been bit of relief for firefighters, as containment has more than tripled from over the weekend to now nearly 23 percent.

REDDING, Calif. (KGO) -- The Carr Fire has spread to over 100,000 acres, reducing many homes to little more than rubble. There has been bit of relief for firefighters, containment has more than tripled from over the weekend to now 23 percent.

But the firefight is far from over.

Tens of thousands of residents are anxious to get back in their homes.

PHOTOS: Massive Carr Fire tears through Shasta County

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A firefighter walks along a containment line while battling a wildfire Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Redding, Calif.

AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

Taming horses is not what construction workers were sent to the Carr Fire to do. They were tasked with bringing heavy equipment in to help battle the blaze, but when they saw a frightened horse running through a burn area, they tried to corral her.

It wasn't meant to be, but it's another example of how this community is rallying to help one another. Just as thousands of firefighters are doing their part to hold the line on a massive fire, that's at least slowed in recent days.

At Buckhorn Summit fire crews worked to knock down flames before they rise up into trees.

Closer to Redding, many of the nearly 40,000 residents evacuated are eager to go home and to help each other.

"Pull together and stay positive," said evacuee Joy Holman. "There's so many people in this community helping and we know we're all going to get through it. We're all going to get through it."

"We just gotta be patient," said CHP officer Jason Morton. "You know, we're all at the mercy of the fire. And it's not just the fire, we have power lines that are down, gas lines, water lines."

"The worst part is not knowing," said Ronald Henninger, who has been evacuated since Thursday.

He knows that his neighbor's house is okay but he's not sure about his.

"You just never think it's going to happen to you," he said. "You work twenty years to put things together, and even if the house is there, the landscape is going to be just terrible."

ABC7 News told Henninger that we would check on his house for him, and we found it, unfortunately, burned.

Visit this page for a map of all the homes that have been destroyed in this tragic fire.

Get the latest on the Carr Fire here, the Complex Fire here and the latest on wildfires across California here.

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