SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Forty years after the Normal Heights Fire, those who lived through it are coming together to encourage their entire community to be more fire prepared.
“I never imagined that the whole neighborhood would burn down. It just didn’t seem real because it had never happened before,” said Lois Miller, who along with her husband Richard, lost their home.
Residents recount how things unfolded 40 years ago.
“I gathered up the children. We didn’t have to be asked to evacuate. It was 10 minutes of breathable air at that time. I just said goodbye to the house,” said Susan Redelings.
The Redelings’ home was spared during the historic Normal Heights Fire on June 30, 1985.
It was the hottest day of the year and the hottest June 30 on record at 96 degrees. Strong winds sent a fire fueled by heavy brush up a series of Mission Valley canyons. The Normal Heights Fire burned 300 acres, destroyed 76 houses, and damaged 57 others.
Despite the destruction, there were no fatalities.
Redelings has now turned the 40-year mark into a learning opportunity for her community, going through the process to create the Normal Heights Fire Safe Council.
“Get others engaged, because my motto is fire safety through community engagement,” said Redelings.
Fire officials and councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera also came by to support educating everyone about how to reduce their risk.
“Today you can’t tell there was ever a fire. The idea was that we’re 40 years into it now. Forty years of growth,” said Richard Miller.
That is why the Redelings and others have been holding canyon cleanups and staying on top of the safety of their neighborhood with this newly formed council, hoping history will not repeat itself there.
The Fire Marshal says San Diego has around 20 fire safe councils in neighborhoods throughout the city, which he says is the most any city has by far in the entire state.
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