CAROLINA FOREST, S.C. (WPDE) — For the first time in over 24 hours, residents in Carolina Forest communities like Walker Woods and Avalon are being allowed back into their homes.
Mandatory evacuations as the 1600-acre wildfire in Carolina Forest blew closer and closer to these communities, and forced so many to leave everything they know behind.
Wendy and Luis Ruiz are residents of the Avalon community and said they only knew to take all they could and leave as soon as possible.
“We just grabbed everything, put it in, and had to run and had to leave, like no space to think, you have to have everything right away, like okay I need this, this, and that and then we gotta go,” said Wendy.
While they were gone, they were glued to their backyard camera as the fire threatened all they’d worked for.
TRENDING: More Carolina Forest neighborhoods evacuated as wildfire reaches 1200 acres
“Before we left I prayed over my house and the neighbor’s house, the neighborhood, and I said Lord this is in your hands, I know you are gonna send your angels, and they are gonna cover us, and we are gonna be fine,” said Wendy.
As the flames came closer, Wendy looked for a spark of hope to keep her and even her next-door neighbors in good spirits.
It’s in times like this when people wave to their neighbor a little longer, hug people, greet animals, and live life to the fullest. There was no way of knowing if a fast, shifting wind could take it all away.
“You do not know how long you are gonna be out of your home. You grab enough medication to last you however long,” said Wendy.
Home sweet home is a phrase that now has a deeper meaning for the Ruiz family.
They experienced no damage to their house, and are making sure that the next-door neighbors make it back to their untouched houses too.
“It is like ‘yes’ I thought that it was gonna be longer. I thought we were in that uncertainty of how long this is going to last, but they did a great job; all these planes, helicopters, firefighters coming from all these places, also and all the cops, they are doing a phenomenal job,” said Wendy.
Stick with ABC15 for updates on wildfire containments and any necessary safety updates.
