Auburn residents return to the ashes

Sunday afternoon Genetta Ison had just prepared lunch at her Auburn home and turned on the Giants game. Then she smelled smoke. What happened next was a whirlwind as she raced to get her family to safety as the fast-moving 49 Fire made its way toward their home. Neighbors helped load her wheelchair-bound daughter into her car and went to grab Ison's husband, who was standing in the backyard spraying water at the fire. As the family pulled out of their driveway they saw an initial wave of flames consume their roof. On Tuesday Ison walked through the ashes of burned wood that used to be her home. Her daughter, Stacy Etchells, son-in-law and former son-in-law were also at the scene, using rakes and shovels to pick up the ashes and find any keepsake they could."All I can find are my dad's old coins," Stacy Etchells said, shaking her head. "They're the only things that would make it through something so devastating." It was an emotional day for many of the residents who were finally allowed to return to their homes and found virtually nothing. Finding a burned purse buckle was worth saving for one family while another man could only stare and shake his head at the motorcycle he spent six years saving money for laying charred on its side. The 49 Fire reportedly burned about 340 acres and was about 80 percent contained as of late Tuesday morning. The fire started at about 2:40 p.m. on Highway 49 and Rock Creek road in North Auburn. Mary Ann Aldrich, Cal Fire public information officer, said 63 homes and three commercial buildings were destroyed. An additional three homes and six buildings received major damages. The cause as well as the origin of the fire remains under investigation. Residents evacuated from more than 200 homes were allowed to return to their neighborhoods at 7 p.m. Monday. A lost oasisIson stood in her backyard surrounded by the burnt palm trees she had planted more than 20 years ago. She pointed to an outdoor fireplace that had been built a few years ago and was the setting for many summer dinners. What she couldn't point to was the lemon tree that reminded her of her now deceased brother or the cherry, pomegranate, apricot, nectarine and peach trees that had filled her backyard oasis. "We had total privacy," Ison said. Etchells stopped short when she came across a two-seat swing chair with just the seats remaining. "I used to swing on this with my dad," Etchells said, bending down to the touch the chair. After a moment she quickly stood and walked away. "It's just stuff," Etchells said. "It doesn't matter."As the morning wore on, the family continued to search through piles of debris for Etchells' grandmother's jewelry.Etchells said while many pictures burned she had copies of her mother's wedding photos at her Loomis home."She doesn't know I have duplicates of her wedding photos that burned," Etchells said. "My parents were married 60 years ago. That will be a nice surprise." One pink flip-flop brings a smile to victim's faceIn the rush to get herself and her two dogs out of her home, Janet Lorentz lost a shoe. There were embers hitting her face and she couldn't see through her windshield as she tried to drive away from the approaching flames that later leveled her Auburn home. "When I left running through my garage my heart dropped when I saw the canyon," Lorentz said. I was like, 'Damn, I know it's going to be gone.'"Tuesday Lorentz and her mother Louise DalSoglio took a quick stop by the home to see what was left. What Lorentz found was a happy surprise."I couldn't believe how happy I was to see this one pink shoe," Lorentz said with a big smile on her face holding up an unscathed bright pink flip-flop.'This was our new start'Phil Kattenhorn and his wife had just settled into their new home in Auburn about 18 months ago. They bought new furniture that mixed well with the antiques and old family photos that Kattenhorn liked to collect. The couple had to leave all of that behind when they evacuated Sunday. "We saw the fire on the hillside and a bomber coming over dumping retardant," Kattenhorn said. "I knew the fire was real but I didn't feel it would come into our neighborhood and do what it did." The fire destroyed multiple homes in his community located off Parkway Drive, including Kattenhorn's. Tuesday he was standing at the top of his driveway near a 2002 Harley Davidson springer softtail motorcycle it took six years to save the money to purchase. "My wife is 48 years old and had never been on the back of a motorcycle," Kattenhorn said. "It was her first ride." Kattenhorn runs Longhorn Meats in Auburn but will have to take time away from his job as he and his wife rebuild. His father, Dan Kattenhorn, said the business is hobbling along as his son takes time off."He's missed down at the store," Dan Kattenhorn said. "We're not able to do everything we need to do. Phil is the backbone of the meat department." 'Burn baby burn'The Calderon family's home was destroyed and their two beloved dogs, a Yorkie named Nakia and a Chiuhaha named Bozz lost their lives, in the 49 Fire Sunday. However, as the family and two friends were pulling back debris Tuesday looking for items worth keeping, there was one thing Shaonette Calderon was happy to see burned. In a moment of realization, Calderon pointed to two pieces of charred metal and called out to her family."I just realized that's that nasty treadmill," Calderon exclaimed. "Burn, baby, burn. I hated every morning getting on that thing." As the family continued to search, Calderon's husband, Luis, said he found a buckle to one of his wife's purses. "Do you want to keep it?" he asked. Shaonette Calderon answered, yes. "It's weird to only have what's just on your back," Shaonette Calderon said. She said her family, which includes her three sons and husband plan to rebuild. "At least we're all safe," Shaonette said. Jenifer Gee can be reached at jeniferg@goldcountrymedia.com.