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American Morning
Arizona Men Discuss Fires Nearing Home
Aired June 24, 2002 - 08:09 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Arizona's governor says it's the worst fire anyone has ever seen, much less people in her own state. And this morning the massive fire has reduced Show Low, Arizona, to a ghost town. A wall of rising smoke forced thousands of residents to get out.
But Bob Genet and his son Rustin still hunker down, waiting it out.
And they are with us live this morning in Show Low.
Good morning, men.
RUSTIN GENET: Hello.
BOB GENET: Good morning.
HEMMER: Bob, it is said that 95 percent of the people in your town are gone. Why then, sir, do you and your son stick around behind?
B. GENET: Well, it was a hard decision for us to make. I think the main reason, we're, our home is just right directly behind us, probably 200, 300 yards. This is the command center, and they've assured the media and everybody around here that this is a safe zone and that if the fire comes into Show Low, burns through Show Low, that this particular area wouldn't burn.
And so I sent my wife out and -- to shelter, to safety, and me and Russ had made the decision that we were going to stay.
HEMMER: Bob, you raised an interesting point in your answer there. Why is it that fire officials believe that part of Show Low won't burn?
B. GENET: I think it's the -- you know -- looking from the top, this particular area, the way the trees are laid out in our particular town or whatever, apparently the fire, you know, there's more fuel or more trees to the south and the north of us, and this particular area just would be safe. Apparently, there's some fire breaks and less fuel, and I guess this is a pretty safe area.
HEMMER: Rustin, some people might think you and your father are a bit crazy right now. What do you say to them? R. GENET: We think that we're better off here at our homes. We've seen on TV a lot of people over there at the shelters, and they're over there wondering what's going on over here with their homes, in their home town. And they're unable to get information. We're at our home. We know our home is safe. And so we feel comfortable there at our home as long as we can be there.
HEMMER: Are you ready to turn tail, Rustin, if, indeed, the conditions there change?
R. GENET: Yes, we are, definitely. Our truck is packed up with everything that we feel that we need, all of our most important stuff, stuff that we're unable to replace. So yes, if the time comes, we're not going to stay around and try to fight the fire if it comes to our house. But if it gets close, we're definitely prepared to leave as soon as we need to.
HEMMER: Bob, what have you packed up so far? What's valuable? What have you prioritized?
B. GENET: Probably pictures, personal clothing, personal items, you know, jewelry -- the stuff that you really can't replace: videos, home videos of our children, you know, when they were small, you know, that type of stuff. We have a file drawer, you know; I have the whole drawer sitting in the front seat of my car, insurance papers, you know, personal papers, bank accounts, that type of stuff.
And like Rustin said, you know, we're not here to fight the fire, and our property isn't more important than our lives, by any means. And as soon as we would feel that our lives were in jeopardy or that the town was in jeopardy, we are prepared to be out. In 30 seconds we can be out of town. So we're just here, we're just here, we're more comfortable in our home.
We've got family members, people all over the state calling in to us, and we're kind of a source of information, you know, right here in our town to our, to the community, people that's left the community. And we've been checking on their homes and giving reports back. And so it's been a good thing.
HEMMER: Bob, your governor, Jane Hull, over the weekend, said quite emphatically that forest management in the American West must be a national priority. I'm curious to know do you agree with her comments? And how would you recommend that Arizona takes care of itself in the future?
B. GENET: You know, you don't even think about these things until there's a disaster like this. Apparently -- and I don't know the numbers or whatever -- but apparently per acre of land there are only -- ideally there should only be so many stands of pine trees per acre. And apparently we're like 10 times that here. We've got to get in and take care of our forests nationally -- not only in Arizona, all through the Southwest, all through the world.
And I'm not sure how we need to do that. The government needs to handle that. But it definitely needs to be a priority. I mean... HEMMER: Rustin, in the short time I have left here -- I apologize for the interruption. I think we had a little car passing by there.
B. GENET: No problem.
HEMMER: Rustin, I know your father has a car dealership in town there. As you men make your way around town, how would you describe it to us?
R. GENET: It's pretty scarce. You drive down the streets and -- we drove down the streets a few times yesterday. We didn't see any cars. There's no businesses open, nowhere to -- there's no gas stations, no stores. Nothing's open. Everything's closed. And there's very few people around at all. It's kind of a scary feeling.
HEMMER: Bob and Rustin Genet, father and son, waiting it out in Show Low, Arizona. Another day dawning there in the Southwest.
Thank you, men, and good luck, OK?
R. GENT: Thank you.
B. GENET: Thank you.
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