BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO — On the third day of the Borel Fire, Gafford, Deputy Brandon Steffins, U.S. Forest Service officer Ty Davis and another deputy were evacuating residents in Havilah when the fire crossed a road nearby sending them searching for an alternate route.
- The Borel Fire is now over 90% contained three weeks after it initially sparked. It started July 24 after a vehicle went over the edge of Highway 178 and caught fire. By the third day the blaze had burned over 3,000 acres.
- It was on that day three Sheriff deputies and a U.S. Forest Service officer found themselves trapped by the flames.
The Borel Fire is now over 90% contained three weeks after it initially sparked. It started July 24 after a vehicle went over the edge of Highway 178 and caught fire. By the third day the blaze had burned over 3,000 acres.
It was on that day three Sheriff deputies and a U.S. Forest Service officer found themselves trapped by the flames.
“The situation we all had just went through was obviously scary,” said Deputy Bobby Gafford. “I think we all had a moment where we didn’t know if we were going to make it out or not.”
On the third day of the Borel Fire, Gafford, Deputy Brandon Steffins, U.S. Forest Service officer Ty Davis and another deputy were evacuating residents in Havilah when the fire crossed a road nearby sending them searching for an alternate route.
“Honestly you just do the best you can, you fall back on your training you’ve had through your career,” said Davis.
Gafford, Steffins, and Davis looking back at the ordeal Friday, explaining what it was like on the front lines.
When it became clear the fire was closing in, fire crews, dispatch, and aerial units began working to find a way to rescue them. The group attempted to get to higher ground at the top of Carper, with units suggesting they even use flares to potentially start a back fire.
“I know for myself I was ready to try and outrun the fire, which wouldn’t have worked out so we all just had to rely on each other,” Steffins said.
Eventually they were able to reach Kern County Fire. While the race to escape lasted around 40 minutes, the group said it felt like time stopped.
“You ever heard of time flies when your having fun, this wasn’t fun it really felt like a long time up there,” Gafford said.
“It did,” responded Davis.
As the revisited what happened the men said they wouldn’t change anything because no matter what, they made it home.
“Being able to given them hugs and kisses,” Gafford said, discussing his wife children. “That’s when it kinda hit how serious it was/ I don’t like to use the word lucky but how lucky we were.”
In the immediate aftermath, they said once they were safe they were ready to jump back into action evacuating other residents in need, but it just goes to show how quickly a fire like that can spread.
“I feel for everyone in Havilah but when these evacuation orders go out its for a reason and it’s to protect your life,” Steffins said. “And the lives of all the firefighters and first responders who have to go into the fire."
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