'A place we can be safe': PG&E worker shares his story of helping 100 people escape the Electra Fire
By happenstance, the PG&E relief operator was nearby doing a regular monthly check of the Electra powerhouse when the fire broke out
By happenstance, the PG&E relief operator was nearby doing a regular monthly check of the Electra powerhouse when the fire broke out
By happenstance, the PG&E relief operator was nearby doing a regular monthly check of the Electra powerhouse when the fire broke out
Helicopters hovered on Saturday over where the Electra Fire raged just days before in Amador County, as Pacific Gas and Electric Co. crews worked to replace burned power poles to restore electricity.
The day the fire broke out, PG&E relief operator Gabe Garcia just so happened to be nearby doing a regular check of the Electra Powerhouse when he saw the blaze.
"Although it was a little unnerving seeing the flames for myself, I think it was a priority to respond," Garcia said.
As the fire spread, nearly 100 people had to scramble to get out of the River Canyon.
"Seeing the fire coming up over a couple of hills and approaching fast, it was pretty evident that everyone out on the fourth enjoying their time, got interrupted," Garcia said.
| READ MORE | Electra Fire containment grows to 72%, all evacuation orders downgraded in Amador and Calaveras counties
Authorities believe the fire started in the Vaught's Beach Recreation Area, possibly by fireworks or a barbeque. It spread quickly and people celebrating the Fourth of July had to escape fast.
Just beyond the ridge from the beach were Garcia and the sturdy Electra Powerhouse.
Cal Fire crews fought the flames and Amador Sheriff's deputies moved boulders and trees to clear the path on the only road to the Electra Powerhouse.
"Once they all saw the powerhouse, there was a little bit of a sigh of there's someplace else we can go. There's a place we can be safe," Garcia said.
Soon, the nearly 100 people, who were trying to enjoy the holiday on the river, were surrounded by fire and taking cover inside the powerhouse.
"I was a little taken back, not only adults, but children, infants, elderly, people from different countries who spoke different languages," he said.
People like Milka Mikula and her family from Valley Springs, who took refuge there.
"This was the closest I've ever been to a fire. It was literally within feet of us," Mikula said. "It was pretty smoky in there, pretty hard not to breathe."
"[The powerhouse] has been through fires and floods and storms. We know it can sustain pretty much everything that is thrown at it," Garcia said.
For six hectic hours, Garcia tried to keep the evacuees calm. But he said the true hero is a 9-year-old girl who asked people to answer a simple question on a piece of paper.
"I looked at the scroll and I said, 'I'm most thankful we could have a place to come and be safe.' And she smiled and said, 'You're not the only one who said that,'" Garcia said.
Arson investigators are still looking into the exact cause of the fire. On Saturday, all evacuation orders had been downgraded to warnings as crews continue to gain leverage on the flames.