LAKE ISABELLA, CA - Fire crews have worked tirelessly day and night to contain the Shirley fire and keep people in the area safe. Monday evening, fire officials hosted a meeting in Wofford Heights to touch base with members of the communities affected.
The sky above the Kern River Valley was a lot clearer Monday night. Officials say they have the fire 75 percent contained and valley residents praised their efforts to get a handle on the fire.
With the Shirley Fire dying down, local and state officials met with those impacted by the wildfire to address community concerns.
"When we originally planned this meeting it was more to explain the strategy of where we're going. Since we succeeded very well in getting the smoke down before the meeting, it turned into what we could do better next time and here's what we did," said incident commander Jeanne Pincha-Tulley.
The main talking point for many residents was how to gather information on evacuations and how to help elderly and disabled citizens who need to seek shelter.
"I was ready to evacuate. I had everything all packed up, and now I'm going to have to unpack which I'm very happy to do to unpack into my house."
Isabella Highlands resident Jim Davis didn't have to be evacuated, but for those who had to leave their homes, the Red Cross set up a shelter at the Lake Isabella Senior Center where some evacuees waited for the word from officials.
"Everyone's just being patient and calm, just keeping an eye on the situation making sure the firefighters are doing everything they can," said Jessica Piffero, American Red Cross.
The fire that started late Friday afternoon grew exponentially over the weekend. Evacuations were issued to several communities in the Kern River Valley, but they were lifted Monday evening.
"It's going to get nothing but drier. I don't see any much rain in the forecast so if you're really asked to evacuate if you have a fire near you, get ready to evacuate. If they ask you to evacuate, please go," Pincha-Tulley explained.
Fire officials emphasized the best way to get up-to-date information is by signing up for Ready Kern, the free emergency notification service at ReadyKern.com.
The sky above the Kern River Valley was a lot clearer Monday night. Officials say they have the fire 75 percent contained and valley residents praised their efforts to get a handle on the fire.
With the Shirley Fire dying down, local and state officials met with those impacted by the wildfire to address community concerns.
"When we originally planned this meeting it was more to explain the strategy of where we're going. Since we succeeded very well in getting the smoke down before the meeting, it turned into what we could do better next time and here's what we did," said incident commander Jeanne Pincha-Tulley.
The main talking point for many residents was how to gather information on evacuations and how to help elderly and disabled citizens who need to seek shelter.
"I was ready to evacuate. I had everything all packed up, and now I'm going to have to unpack which I'm very happy to do to unpack into my house."
Isabella Highlands resident Jim Davis didn't have to be evacuated, but for those who had to leave their homes, the Red Cross set up a shelter at the Lake Isabella Senior Center where some evacuees waited for the word from officials.
"Everyone's just being patient and calm, just keeping an eye on the situation making sure the firefighters are doing everything they can," said Jessica Piffero, American Red Cross.
The fire that started late Friday afternoon grew exponentially over the weekend. Evacuations were issued to several communities in the Kern River Valley, but they were lifted Monday evening.
"It's going to get nothing but drier. I don't see any much rain in the forecast so if you're really asked to evacuate if you have a fire near you, get ready to evacuate. If they ask you to evacuate, please go," Pincha-Tulley explained.
Fire officials emphasized the best way to get up-to-date information is by signing up for Ready Kern, the free emergency notification service at ReadyKern.com.