Evacuation orders from the Hawk Fire had serious impacts on residents in the North Valleys who did not, or could not, evacuate.
2 News Nevada spoke to Richard and Janene Fletcher, who say they planned to evacuate from their home in Bordertown Saturday night.
They say they were told to evacuate north, where U.S. 395 was closed to Hallelujah Junction. To the south, they had nowhere to go with their animals.
"We have chickens. We have feral cats that can't go anywhere. We have a German shepherd. So we can't just grab our horde and bring it into town,” Janene Fletcher says.
Janene says she had to cancel a cancer appointment with her doctor set for Wednesday morning. She and her husband didn't know if North Virginia Street would open in time. Unfortunately, she cancelled it an hour before it opened on Tuesday afternoon.
They lost power Saturday afternoon, around the time evacuation orders went out. With nowhere to go and no generator for their home, their options were limited.
Before the closure lifted and power came back on, Janene Fletcher told us, “I’m running off from the generator on my motor home. For how long? I don't know, but that will charge my scooter somewhat and keep our phones charged."
Fortunately, she doesn't have to use the generator anymore now that power is back on.
The couple says their biggest concerns Tuesday morning were why other areas of Cold Springs were open when Bordertown wasn't, and why planes and helicopters weren't attacking hot spots in the morning.
“I get there's a few hot spots up there still. Why isn't there air traffic up there now if there's still hot spots? Good time of day to be flying,” Janene Fletcher says.
“To me it's just grossly unfair that people right here in Cold Springs are able to travel freely, you know, and we are restricted here,” Richard Fletcher says. “We're human beings. We're adults. We're not small kids who need to be punished for not evacuating."
We did try to get answers at the media briefing on Tuesday afternoon, but reporter questions were limited to five minutes.
Our crews on scene did see a helicopter working the Hawk Fire on Tuesday morning after interviewing both Fletchers.
North Virginia Street is now open between Village Parkway and White Lake Parkway.
