Hundreds of people had to evacuate as the Poeville Fire raged through Peavine Peak on Saturday. However, a day after it sparked most evacuees were able to go home, but some didn't have a home to return to.

Navy Veteran and longtime resident of Northern Nevada, Steve Schwartz, said Saturday was just like any other day, until it wasn't. Schwartz was doing household chores and relaxing when the fire first sparked. He said he saw the flames from a distance and wasn't concerned until he received a call from his neighbor. Schwartz's neighbor warned him that the fire was edging closer to their properties. While he was on the phone, he suddenly heard a knock on the door and when he answered it, someone from the Washoe County Sheriff's Office was urging him to evacuate. 

"I just grabbed what I could. An armload, jumped in my car and left," Schwartz said.

Schwartz didn't find out that his home of 22 years was gone until Sunday afternoon.

Schwartz held back tears as he remembered his first thoughts. "It was just soul crushing," he said.

Schwartz said that he has experienced loss before, after he was discharged from the military. He moved back to Northern Nevada to be close to family. After more than a year passed, his first home caught fire. He says he was able to save a few things, but lost the majority of possession to that fire. 

After he left that property, he moved to another house that was destroyed when a massive flood swept through Reno in 1997. Schwartz had to relocate after that, and he once again lost many possessions mostly due to looting. 

He says the Poeville Fire caused the most damage and bigger losses, because many items of sentimental value were destroyed.

"I lost all the paintings from my great uncles and my great aunts. I lost the heirloom furniture from my great grandmothers. I just lost a lot of things that cannot be replaced," Schwartz said. "It's just total devastation. There's nothing left. It's all gone."

Schwartz said he's thankful for family, friends, and community members that have reached out to support him. He will be looking into how much is covered under his insurance, while staying with a family member until he figures out his next steps.

"I don't know what's going on, or what's going to happen next, or where things are going from here. I have no future in my sight at all as far as what's going to happen after this." explained Schwartz.

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