NAMPA, Idaho — A controlled burn that got out of control in a hurry cost a Nampa family their home, and three beloved pets.
Crews from seven different departments rushed to the fire Wednesday afternoon as it burned on the property south of Lake Lowell.
According to officials with the Marsing Fire Department, the fire was started by a farmer who was burning weeds and turned his back on them. It got out of control and the wind pushed the fire east towards Shelley and Donald Stuart’s property.
It destroyed nearly everything they owned. That includes their mobile home, a fifth wheel trailer, a boat and several vehicles. The fire also killed their three dogs.
"The fire was so bad they chased us out of here before we could get a chance to get them,” Donald said.
The Stuarts walked through their property on Thursday, starting to realize what was lost in the fire.
"It burned everything,” Donald said. "It just melted everything."
"Very hard to see your house going up in flames, everything you worked for all your life gone. Raised my kids here, born and raised in this spot and now everything that we had is just gone,” Shelley added.
Both of them happened to wake up from a nap in their home and when they stepped outside, the heat from the fire hit them immediately.
"That's when I looked straight beyond that swing set and seen there was a fire coming this way,” Shelley said.
The three dogs were not able to get away because of how fast the fire moved. Their names were Shadow, Hunter, and Rocko.
“I was trying to get to the dogs, so I could get them out, I was more worried about them,” Shelley said. “One of the firemen come up and pick me up and hauled me to the end of the drive way and told me to stay there.”
In the aftermath, the fire has reduced the place they've called home for more than 30 years to ashes and charred memories.
“75-year-old china that was my grandmother’s, lost all that,” Shelley said.
The family said that right now they're staying with some friends as they try to figure out where to go from here and see if anything can be saved. A GoFundMe account has been set up for the family.
