California family spent 10 hours in icy water to escape wildfire

Wildfires continue to flare up uncontrollably along the west coast, where skies have taken on an eerie orange hue and people are fleeing across the region. This family and friends could have been among the dead if they hadn't jumped into the icy pool and spent 10 agonizing hours there. The story of their salvation was told Inside Edition.

Photo: Shutterstock

Rebecca Crouch, Cindy Drake and 12 other friends and family were camping at a campground in Northern California when the Creek Fire approached their camp. People had to throw themselves into an icy lake to escape the elements.

“When we saw the fire, we ran back to the camp and shouted: “Get ready and run away from here!” - one of the women recalled.

Photo: YouTube / Inside Edition video frame

There were about a hundred people in the camp. According to Rebecca and Cindy, after their shouting, everyone started to fuss, jump into cars and try to drive along the narrow road in one direction. But when we got to the lake, people surrounded on all sides realized that they were trapped. Fiery sparks were visible everywhere in the air.

Photo: YouTube / Inside Edition video frame

They had no place to seek refuge from the fiery element, except in the water.

“Everyone shouted: “Jump into the water, into the water, into the water!” - Rebecca recalls. “The water was icy, everyone was shivering from the cold. It was a firestorm, there’s no other way to put it.”

On the subject: Burned cities, hundreds of thousands of evacuees, dozens of victims: terrible fires continue in the western United States

“I wrapped my arms around my daughter and just put her in the water and pulled her back out,” Cindy admits.

Photo: YouTube / Inside Edition video frame

To keep afloat, people used empty plastic refrigerator containers.

Photo: YouTube / Inside Edition video frame

Their test in icy water lasted for a long 10 hours, until a rescue helicopter from the US National Guard flew to their aid.

“Everyone was screaming, lighting lanterns to attract their attention, because we didn’t understand whether the rescuers even knew that we were here,” the women said. “They risked their lives to save us.”

Photo: YouTube / Inside Edition video frame

Wildfires continue to ravage entire cities in California, Oregon and Washington. If you shoot from a drone the area of ​​the Golden Gate Bridge, you can see that the sky is painted in orange tones, and the city and the bridge are immersed in haze.

Photo: YouTube / Inside Edition video frame

When the operator lifts the drone higher, the city virtually disappears into orange smog.

Photo: YouTube / Inside Edition video frame

Fires make the air unbreathable, and many people try not to go outside. Meteorologists and doctors advise residents to stay indoors for the next week to reduce the negative effects of air pollution on the respiratory tract.

Read also on ForumDaily:

Like on Mars: because of the fires, the sky in California turned into an unusual color

In California, a wildfire completely destroyed the city: there are casualties

Large-scale disaster: wildfire in Washington state destroyed 80% of the city

From record-breaking heat to freezing cold: blizzard hits several US states

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