Assessing their loss

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Brian and Katrina Gogue, who lived with their son, Dillon, 9, and daughter, Sierra, 7, on Coyote Ridge Road, said they were certain their home was lost.

They were at a friend’s house early today and saw a television crew broadcasting from their neighborhood, where the fire had swept through the day before. ‘The whole neighborhood was just destroyed, down to the ground,’ Brian said. ‘We’re 99.9% sure it’s [the house] gone.’ Katrina, who works as a registered nurse at a local hospital, said a firefighter had called and left a message on her cellphone, saying, ‘I’m sorry about your home.’

Brian, who works at a local Toyota dealership not far from where the fire started, said he was at work Sunday afternoon when he noticed ash falling on the new cars on the lot.

But he said he thought the wind was blowing in the direction away from his home. Still, he called his wife, who was spending the afternoon with their kids at a neighbor’s pool, and told her that there might be a fire. Katrina rushed home. When she got there, ‘It was almost black from smoke,’ she said. ‘Ash was falling everywhere.’

Katrina, who had been concerned about wildfires, already had prepared for an emergency evacuation and grabbed the couple’s wedding album and other valuables. She said that about 10 minutes later police came by and told residents to turn their sprinklers on and leave the area. Despite their loss, the couple remained upbeat.

‘It will all work out,’ Katrina said. ‘Worse things could happen,’ Brian said.

-- Eric Bailey