With tens-of-thousands of people scrambling for a place to go as the Glass Fire continues to burn in Sonoma and Napa Counties, hotels are full, leaving some to shelter in their cars.
Some evacuees bedded down on cots at the Finley Aquatic Center, others in their vehicles at A Place to Play in Santa Rosa.
Gail Simons, from the Bennett Valley neighborhood, learned that hotels are full from Santa Rosa to Vallejo. However, that didn’t put a damper on her positive outlook.
“I’m kind of an optimistic person - I have upbeat chemistry,” she said. “But, I’m grateful that my house didn’t burn.”
Another evacuee, Chris Pike, slept in a city park until rousted by Santa Rosa police.
“If we survived two nights, we could probably survive three nights,” he said. “Just, hopefully the fire will stop expanding and start contracting.”
Dan Hosey, an 86-year-old forced to leave his home, took a fall Monday night in a dark parking lot while evacuating, and banged his head. He ended up in the emergency room.
Worried, KCBS Radio Reporter Tim Ryan personally helped check him into the Finley Center, and employees are taking good care of him.
Don Hicks is a recreation and parks supervisor overseeing evacuation centers for the city of Santa Rosa, which were close to being overwhelmed Sunday night.
“We ended up with over 100 vehicles here, which represented probably more than 300 people,” Hicks told KCBS Radio. “As people arrived, they were pretty distraught and upset. We would greet them and say ‘how are you doing?’ And we had some people breaking down in tears and being emotional because it was a very stressful night.”
A list of evacuation centers in Sonoma County can be found on the county's website.
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