They watched their home burn to the ground

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Between Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear:

The Kerr family watched their Grass Valley Lake-area home burn to the ground Monday morning. Asked to move two blocks away by the CHP, the family parked and waited until they saw the house collapse. Three members of the family of five -- father Michael, 42, Sarah, 14, and son Kelle, 13 -- were channeling their grief by volunteering at the Red Cross Evacuation Center in San Bernardino, helping to set up cots and pick up trash early Monday evening.

‘We’re mountain people; we’re tough,’ Michael Kerr said. ‘We’re here to help out and to help ourselves mentally.

‘You have to be either part of the problem or part of the solution, so we’re not going to sit around and cry.’

Two other family members -- Julie, 41, and John, 12 -- were staying at a Motel 6 to catch up on their rest. All five shared a three-story house, valued at $500,000. They’re planning on staying at the shelter overnight to work out details with the insurance company on a temporary dwelling.

‘We’re going to rebuild,’ Michael said. ‘We’ve been living in that area for 22 years and seeing fires come and go. We ain’t leaving.’

He’s a house painter. She’s a homemaker.

All they left with were a few bags of clothes, their dog and some photos. They had 45 minutes to leave.

-- Francisco VaraOrta