PERSONAL: Father and son firefighters lose own homes while trying to save their California town

Record ID: 1831157

  • Title: PERSONAL: Father and son firefighters lose own homes while trying to save their California town
  • Date: 31st July 2024
  • Summary: COHASSET, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (JULY 30, 2024) (REUTERS) DESTROYED VEHICLES AT DAVE TEHAN'S HOME VARIOUS OF DAVE’S BURNED DOWN HOME (SOUNDBITE) (English) DAVE TEHAN, 66, VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER/COHASSET RESIDENT, SAYING: "I feel luckier than some of the people here because we do have a few things - not very much, but a few things to hold in our hands that survived. My g
  • Embargoed: 14th August 2024 04:42
  • Keywords: CAL FIRE CALIFORNIA COHASSET FIREFIGHTERS PARK FIRE WILDFIRES
  • Location: COHASSET, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
  • City: COHASSET, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
  • Country: US
  • Topics: Disaster/Accidents,North America,Wildfires/Forest Fires
  • Reuters ID: LVA001317130072024RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Dave and Johnathan Tehan were on a family camping trip on the coast of northern California when they heard about the Park Fire edging closer to their home town of Cohasset (pronounced: COH-HASS-ETT), six-and-a-half hours away.
    The duo graduated from the Cal Fire Academy together and have battled wildfires alongside one another over the last several years.
    Once they realized the seriousness of the Park Fire, they sprang into action and headed for the blaze. But as they battled to save their local community, their own homes burned to the ground.
    "My granddaughter's car survived, so she's happy. All of our pets are okay, so we have good things," 66-year-old Dave Tehan told Reuters on Tuesday (July 30) "And there was a small amount of stuff that didn't burn in one container and, they're pictures, so I'm just so happy to have that."
    Dave lost his firefighting equipment in the blaze, so his coworkers at the fire station bought him a new pair of boots.
    The younger Tehan managed to salvage his Butte County Fire gear, but hasn't had much time to process the loss of his family home. “I haven’t really been down. I don’t know, maybe that will hit me later," Johnathan said.
    His father said, "It's sad to see my son lose his place. He's worked so hard and it's where he grew up as a child and I sold it to him when he came and said he wanted to buy it and raise his kid there."
    Both Tehans are focused on rebuilding their community. They want to make Cohasset safe enough for residents to return and begin rebuilding their lives.
    "We’re taking care of people, their houses, what's left up here," said Johnathan. "The heartbeat still going.”
    The Park Fire swelled to over 600 square miles (1,550 square kms) on Tuesday night, bigger than the city of Los Angeles, fire officials in California said.
    More than 5,500 firefighters from across California and other states were working around the clock to douse the flames and smoldering ashes.
    (Production: Sandra Stojanovic, Jorge Garcia)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2024. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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