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CNN Live Today
Southern California Wildfires
Aired October 29, 2003 - 11:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: In the meantime, we're going to go first to our coverage of the devastating California wild fires.
Right now, CNN's Daryn Kagan reporting live from the front lines there in Stevenson Ranch.
Hi there, Daryn.
KAGAN: Hello, Carol.
The weather has been cooperating so far. Things have been calming down here. All morning long, we've been showing this hillside. Earlier today, it was fully engulfed in flames. Right now, what we want to do is give you a perspective of how close that is to some homes. So come along and take a walk with me. Over my left shoulder, you have wilderness, and here, development of beautiful homes. And in fact, we have one of the residents here.
Dinah, why don't you come join me for a second.
This is Dinah Rocke. She is one of the residents of the street. Tell us how your home has done through the fires.
DINAH ROCKE, RESIDENT: It's done fine. It's smoky inside as far as the smell of smoke, but other than that, it's fine. The one thing that the firemen said to us is that our houses are perfect for this. They've been built in the last two to three years, so they have fire- retardant roofs, there's no wood that shows under the eaves. It's all stucco. They were confident that they could save our homes, and they did.
KAGAN: And it was about, I say, 20 hours ago that the winds shifted. You didn't expect at this time yesterday for the fire to come in this direction. It came very quickly. And the fire department did make a decision to evacuate this neighborhood. You chose to stay, though.
ROCKE: Well, they said evacuate. And then it was kind of not mandatory., but lot of the people with small children did. I left for a couple hours and went to my friend's. But my husband said it was fine, and so I tried to get back in, and the firemen let me in, because I had ID. And so I came back in and spent the night.
KAGAN: And what was that night like watching the fire come up over this hill?
ROCKE: It was very surreal. It was like you're standing there seeing this fire coming close to your house, and you're thinking, no, that's not happening.
KAGAN: And you're talking about the construction of these houses are two, three years old, built with this in mind. When you were a home shopper, did you keep that in mind?
ROCKE: You know, we fell in love with the house. We had our fire insurance man come out, and he looked it. We were far enough way, because we have a few houses around us. He said that we were fine. And actually he didn't see a problem other than smoke damage is what he felt we would get. But we figured, it's not going to happen to you.
Never going to happen to you. This time it didn't. And congratulations on that. Enjoy your home.
ROCKE: Thank you very much.
KAGAN: Dinah Rocke, joining us from Stevenson Ranch. One of the lucky ones. Their home makes it, and the fire goes in the opposite direction.
Carol, back to you.
LIN: That's what we need. We need some good news. Thanks, Daryn. Good luck to that woman out there.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired October 29, 2003 - 11:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: In the meantime, we're going to go first to our coverage of the devastating California wild fires.
Right now, CNN's Daryn Kagan reporting live from the front lines there in Stevenson Ranch.
Hi there, Daryn.
KAGAN: Hello, Carol.
The weather has been cooperating so far. Things have been calming down here. All morning long, we've been showing this hillside. Earlier today, it was fully engulfed in flames. Right now, what we want to do is give you a perspective of how close that is to some homes. So come along and take a walk with me. Over my left shoulder, you have wilderness, and here, development of beautiful homes. And in fact, we have one of the residents here.
Dinah, why don't you come join me for a second.
This is Dinah Rocke. She is one of the residents of the street. Tell us how your home has done through the fires.
DINAH ROCKE, RESIDENT: It's done fine. It's smoky inside as far as the smell of smoke, but other than that, it's fine. The one thing that the firemen said to us is that our houses are perfect for this. They've been built in the last two to three years, so they have fire- retardant roofs, there's no wood that shows under the eaves. It's all stucco. They were confident that they could save our homes, and they did.
KAGAN: And it was about, I say, 20 hours ago that the winds shifted. You didn't expect at this time yesterday for the fire to come in this direction. It came very quickly. And the fire department did make a decision to evacuate this neighborhood. You chose to stay, though.
ROCKE: Well, they said evacuate. And then it was kind of not mandatory., but lot of the people with small children did. I left for a couple hours and went to my friend's. But my husband said it was fine, and so I tried to get back in, and the firemen let me in, because I had ID. And so I came back in and spent the night.
KAGAN: And what was that night like watching the fire come up over this hill?
ROCKE: It was very surreal. It was like you're standing there seeing this fire coming close to your house, and you're thinking, no, that's not happening.
KAGAN: And you're talking about the construction of these houses are two, three years old, built with this in mind. When you were a home shopper, did you keep that in mind?
ROCKE: You know, we fell in love with the house. We had our fire insurance man come out, and he looked it. We were far enough way, because we have a few houses around us. He said that we were fine. And actually he didn't see a problem other than smoke damage is what he felt we would get. But we figured, it's not going to happen to you.
Never going to happen to you. This time it didn't. And congratulations on that. Enjoy your home.
ROCKE: Thank you very much.
KAGAN: Dinah Rocke, joining us from Stevenson Ranch. One of the lucky ones. Their home makes it, and the fire goes in the opposite direction.
Carol, back to you.
LIN: That's what we need. We need some good news. Thanks, Daryn. Good luck to that woman out there.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
