Aug. 04--REPORTING FROM CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. -- Chris and Cheryl Christian found a shady spot under a tree in the parking lot of a community center here on Monday afternoon and watched the sky.
Smoke billowed over the nearby hills as the Rocky fire continued to burn six days after it started near Clear Lake.
"You see that big clump of smoke?" Chris said. "That looks about where our home is."
Asked whether they were worried, they both shrugged.
"What are you going to do?" Chris said.
"Can't stop it," Cheryl said.
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They were two of thousands who have had to evacuate because of the Rocky fire, the largest wildfire so far in California this year. They've been married for 50 years and lived in the area for the last 15 of them. Chris, 72, is a retired waste-water plant operator, and Cheryl, 69, used to work in fast food restaurants.
Three years ago, when the Wye fire struck, they scrambled to evacuate in only a few minutes.
This time, they were more prepared. As the Rocky fire began, they packed their bags a few days before they actually needed to leave.
"We've been in a drought for four years," Chris said. "Everything is primed for a fire."
They evacuated on Sunday night and stayed in a nearby hotel room. On Monday, prevented from heading back to their home, they decided to hang out in the parking lot of the local Moose Lodge, where dozens of evacuees had gathered.
As the afternoon rolled along, they sat and watched the scene. The fire had recently jumped part of California 20, according to a spokesman for Cal Fire, increasing the danger to their neighborhood.
Cheryl gestured toward planes circling the area.
"There's two up there," she said.
Glancing to the right, away from where her home is located, she spotted thickening smoke.
"There's another big cloud there," she said.
"When it burns black it's a house," said Terri Larsen, managing editor of a local Lake County magazine, who was sitting nearby.
They kept sitting and watching and waiting.
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